City of Infernal Games
by SilverCarstairs
Summary: Based on the 75th hunger games. TMI/ TID characters in the hunger games. Jace Wayland has one wish. One more chance before it's too late. One more year to enter the games. But his last year is the quarter quell. He gets his wish, but once he finds out who else is taking part, he wishes he'd taken Tessa's advice. He realises he would do anything to save his friends.
1. The daydreamer from district 4

**City of Infernal Games.**

**Good idea? Bad idea? Once I'm a few chapters in you guys will have to vote on who I should kill, I CAN'T KILL OFF JEM, WILL, ALEC, MAGNUS, SIMON, JACE OR TESSA! I CAN'T! Grrrr. I do prefer TID to TMI, so the minor TMI character will die before any minors from TID. Urg. This is going to be hard.**

**ALSO! THIS IS THE 75TH HUNGER GAMES! SO PRETEND THAT KATNISS ALONE WAS LAST YEARS VICTOR. OK?**

**Disclaimer: Books belong to Suzanne Collins, Cassandra Clare, SilverCarstairs… ok, not the last one. But the plot is mine, all mine! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA….**

Chapter 1- The daydreamer from district 4.

_The clock. The golden cornucopia in the distance. The podium where twenty-four children were standing. The robotic numbers were slowly ticking down the time he'll have to assess the situation, to form a plan. But he already had a plan. To charge, to fight, to _win_. People said William Herondale was a good fighter. Those who said that were wrong. They hadn't yet seen this boy fight. Once they saw him, they wouldn't forget it. There was less than ten seconds on the clock now. The boy smirked. This would be fun._

"Jace!"

Jace was jerked out of his daydream by the young girl standing in front of him, holding a small, slimy fish in her hands. Well. It had been in her hands. She threw the fish, hitting Jace squarely in the face.

Jace swore. Loudly.

She laughed. "You know, you might want to keep the face on your face like that full time. Improves your look." She choked through her laughter. Clutching her side, she turned around to walk back to the net, giving Jace his opportunity. As swift as lightning, he grabbed the fish off the boat floor.

"Tessa?" The girl turned around, only to be hit in the face by the same fish.

Her grin reappeared, only to be replaced by a frown. "Shut up." She said, as Jace started spluttering at her expression. "I only hit you _with_ that fish so you'd snap out of your pretty little daydreams." She started hauling up the net, with Jace bending down to help her.

"It wasn't really that pretty. I was thinking about the games."

Tessa gave a slight shudder. "I really have _no_ _idea_ why you want to enter. How many times is your name in _this_ year?"

"Twelve." He grinned. "This year's my last chance. I can't not participate. I've been training, I know I'm ready. I'm going to volunteer if I don't get picked."

"Why do you even _want_ to take part? You have a one-in-twenty four- chance of survival. Perhaps less if your training score is low."

Jace snorted. "Many tributes win because of their looks. What about Finnick Odair? William Herondale?" He asked.

Tessa looked at him. "Jace, the games are _barbaric_. What about last year's victor, Katniss Everdeen? Peeta Mellark _killed_ _himself_ so she could win. Anyone who takes part in the games isn't the same afterwards, you know that."

Jace caught her gaze. "I'm different." Was all he said, before they tossed the net back into the water.

Tessa sighed. "I know. To love is to destroy, I get it. But it's the reading of the cards tonight. Before you fantasise about your victory, at least see what the twist is going to be. Please?"

Jace nodded. Seemed fair enough. "Fine."

Tessa smiled. "Alright then. Want to get back to shore?"

Jace shrugged. "Do what you want. I'm swimming." He said, before diving into the water. He emerged from the water, shaking water from his golden hair. "TESSA?" He yelled. "HAPPY HUNGER GAMES!"

"And may the odds be EVER in your favour." She shouted after him.

Jace grinned, before he submerged into the water again, and headed off to shore.

**Just to clarify, Jace and Tessa ARE NOT in love. Don't worry. It's a Jessa/Wessa FTW fic, not a… Yeah, there's no ship name for that. Oh no, it'd be JESSA! NOOOOOOOOO! I'll never look at that the same way ever. EVER.**

**Actually, it'd sort of be incest, wouldn't it?**

**…Moving on…they aren't in love. No JASSA. JESSA is a yes, as is WESSA. No JASSA. That also needs a better name.**

**ANYWAY! R&R PLEASE! PLEEEEEAAAAASSSSSSSSSEEEEEEEEE? ALSO, WHAT DO YA FINK SO FAR? Tres bon? Oui? Non? **


	2. The reading of the card

**Still don't know whether or not to do it as a POV or not. Hmph. Ah well, I'll keep it how Cassie Clare writes it for now, might change it later on. ;)**

**Disclaimer: …...Here that? It's the sound of thousands of people cheering me for how much they love how I wrote TMI, TID and THG. You don't hear it? No, neither do I. That's because I own nothing accept the plot.**

Chapter two- The reading of the cards.

Victors Village, District 5.

Isabelle Lightwood sauntered into the Lightwood house in Victors Village. Alec simply raised his eyebrow. He need not have worried when Izzy had been reaped when she was only thirteen. She joined the career pack, and offered to take watch one night, when there was only the career pack, her and two others left. Then she killed the career pack while they slept. She hunted down one person the same night, and the next day she disposed of the other easily, using an old piece of wire like a whip. This action had left her famous, and she now carried a thin, silver whip on her at all times, which curled into a bracelet around her wrist. Alec smiled inwardly. The things the Capitol can do is incredible.

"Did I miss it?" She asked, snatching the book from Alec's hands.

"What?"

"THE CARD READING, IDIOT." She said, hitting Alec on the head with his book.

"Wha? Oh that. Not sure, don't think so." He muttered. He wanted nothing to do with the Capitol. Two years ago, Alecs brother Max had been chosen. He was only nine. He had been one of the first to die. Max had run straight away, far from the cornucopia, but was hunted down by the career pack.

Izzy turned to him, as if to say something, but she decided not to, and turned on the TV. President Snow was just opening the card.

"We could have missed it!" She whined to Alec.

"This year…" The president said, staring down at the card. "As a reminder to the rebels that anyone is powerless under the rule of the Capitol, any child can be selected, victors included. There will be no weapons provided for the games, and the Capitol shall vote for the winner once the final 3 people remain."

Izzy froze, her back ramrod straight. Alec turned to her, incredibly slowly. _Izzy could be chosen._ Alec thought, his heart stopping. I could be chosen. And if we were chosen, we would probably never come back home.

"Noo…" Alec moaned quietly.

Izzys grey-blue eyes narrowed. "What?" She snapped. "Alec, it's the same as it always is. There's no certainty that WE'LL be chosen."

Alec's bottle-glass eyes stared back. "But Izzy…IF we are chosen. No one will volunteer as tribute. No one. The Capitol women will vote for the pretty boys, the Capitol men the strongest looking."

Izzy raised her eyebrow. "Well then." She said, turning off the TV. "Let's hope the odds are EVER in our favour. Alec and Izzy said there goodnights and went to bed. Although the other didn't know it, neither brother nor sister would sleep tonight.

Gray house, District Four.

"This year…As a reminder to the rebels that anyone is powerless under the rule of the Capitol, any child can be selected, victors included. There will be no weapons provided for the games, and the Capitol shall vote for the winner once the final 3 people remain." President Snow said, folding up the card and placing it in his pocket.

Jace dragged his hands down his face.

Dammit.

"Told you so." Tessa said sadly, from next to him.

"The announcement said something about victors being reaped, no weapons and voting. There were, however, no sentences saying 'Jace Wayland has been chosen.' in that speech. And anyway, it's the Capitols vote. What Capitol member could refuse _this? _Just call me Mr Irresistible!" Jace said, adamantly.

Tessa snorted. Jace was currently dressed in his old, stained fishing gear. It wasn't exactly a designer suit, yet hey, everyone to their own.

"Yeah yeah, whatever. I'm gonna make tea now, what do you want, Mr _Irresistible_?" She said sarcastically. But, she couldn't deny Jace was extremely hot. She'd known him since her brother had been killed for committing a crime against the Capitol, and since his father had also been a victim of the Capitol, and his mother had killed herself out of grief. Tessa had offered him Nate's old room, and, as a result, he was practically her brother. The love she felt for him was completely different to the one the girls at school gave him.

"What do we have?" Jace asked.

"Well, we have fish…fish…um…fish….oh and grain, since you STUPIDLY entered your name twelve times."

"Hm… I think that fish sounds nice, do we have any bread?" He asked.

Tessa batted her eyelashes, and put on a high pitched voice. "Oh, for YOU Mr Irresistible, there can be anything!" She said breathlessly.

Jace rolled his eyes as she went into the kitchen. If he was picked, this could one of the last home-cooked meals he ever had. The last free evening. The last night that murder would be a word that wasn't associated with him. Suddenly, he wasn't that hungry anymore.

Fray house, District 11.

Clary was sat on her bed, doodling the fields outside, when her mum burst in.

"Clary…" She started.

"Mom? What's wrong?" Clary racked her brain. There had been a mandatory viewing scheduled tonight. It was also the quarter quell this year. What did her mother say before? Something about card reading? "What did the card say?" Clary asked nervously.

Jocelyn Fray gave a grimace. "This year, the final victor will be voted by the Capitol public. There will be no weapons inside the games. Victors can also be reaped, as long as they are 18 or under."

"Oh." Clary said. She was only 15, which of course meant she was still open to the games. She groaned. "They can't do that!"

Jocelyn raised an eyebrow. "Clary, honey. They just did."

Clarys head was spinning. She was either going to faint or vomit. "Mom, just going outside. I need fresh air." She gasped, before stumbling through the rooms of their tiny shack-style bungalow. She barely made it out of the front door before she threw up.

**A/N: The final winner shall be chosen by YOU, the reader, once it gets closer to the end. Bear that in mind. Like/Fave/Follow/Review PLEASE ;) Also, check out my other fics :)**


	3. Giving goodbyes

**PLEASE NOTE! The way some things are set out (capitol rules, reapings, chariot parade, etc) may be different to how Suzanne Collins writes them. Bear that in mind.**

**ALSO! RULE CHANGE! People can compete if they are under 21, not 18.**

**Disclaimer: Characters/Rules/Places belong to Suzanne Collins or Cassie Clare. I own the plot.**

The reaping- District two.

Will Herondale stood among the crowds. It had been four years since he had stood in this square among others, gazing at the stage in front of him.

He wasn't scared. He would be glad if he were picked. He could get away from everyone and everything. All his family and friends were dead, courtesy to President Snow. Will hadn't wanted his body to be sold to another Capitol member night after night. So he had refused. And now everyone was gone.

Apart from Jem.

Jem. A tall, thin, silver boy from District one, whom he met every year at the games and tours, since he and Jem were often mentors. They had undergone a ritual after just one year of knowing each other, in which a small symbol, like a J and an L combined, was now just on their right wrist. It binded them, they were closer than brothers. When they were near each other, they were stronger. Had better hearing. They worked together easily. And, something they had found out during work-outs (Specifically the fighting branch) they worked as one in a fight. You'd need the other to be completely yourself. You needed this…blood brother.

Oh, and by the angel did Will needed Jem. He was the last person he had left, the reason he had such a heartbreakers reputation back in the Capitol. Just because Will was handsome. But in the end, it all came down to looks.

Looks. All people were made of skin and bones, yet some are called pretty and others are not. It was stupid. He envied Jem. Kind, friendly, an all-round good person. And he was innocent. Something not one of the Capitol members wanted to take away from him. He was still _Jem_.

He had been so caught up in his daydreams, he was only brought back to earth by the sound of his name being called.

Being called by the Capitol escort at the top of the stage.

Already on the stage was a tanned, brown haired girl, but he wasn't paying attention to her. His eyes weren't on the hundreds of people staring at him. His eyes were on the bit of paper in the escorts' hand.

He had been chosen.

He quickly gathered his wits and sauntered onto the stage, arrogant smirk already in place. After about a minute, he was taken to the train, yet the girl was marched towards the justice building. And he knew why. He had no loved ones to say goodbye to.

"My name is Lilian Quartza. Now, the people from District one have already been picked, and are currently on the train. The trains' next stop is District three, as there has been a change in the journey. The train is going all the way to District twelve, picking up the chosen as we go along. Then we go straight to the Capitol, for the parade."

Will nodded, not really listening. He was staring at the tall, thin familiar figure walking towards the train. The familiar figure with pale skin. The familiar figure with silver hair. The familiar figure that was Jem.

"Jem!" Will called happily. "You've come to say goodbye!" Will realised something then. He realised he would win for Jem. _He would not lose Jem_. "I'll win, brother. By the angel, I swear I will."

His blood brother looked down, as if upset. "I have no doubts. You won you're games in the fastest time on record."

"See you when I get out then? You'll be there? At the Capitol?"

"Will, I thought you were smart. Did you not hear to anything your escort just said?" Jem said softly.

Will frowned.

_Now, the people from District one have already been picked, and are currently on the train._

"Oh. No Jem. They… they..." He whispered, his face turning ashen.

Jem grimaced. "I'll help you win though Will. You have to win. It's not as you are hated in the Capitol."

"I have no desire to win. It'll mean you're gone. Then I'll have nothing. I'll help you win." Will rushed. He would. His brother would win, no doubt about it. He would do anything to save him.

Jem snorted. "They won't let me take _it_ into the arena Will. I'll last about two days, no one would sponsor me, yet alone vote for me to be their victor."

Of course. Jems _yin fen_. A capitol torture drug, that left the taker dying and coughing blood. It also left them incredibly silver, the same colour as the drug. Silver eyes, hair, even the skin became slightly silver. In Jems games, on the 2nd day it had rained a yin fen/water solution, which many tributes drank. Jem included. He had won the games, simply because he realised he needed the _Yin Fen_ to live. The remaining two tributes didn't realise this however, the next day, one killed themselves because the pain was too great, and the other just died of drug-loss two days after they drank the water. The capitol, however, never had a cure for the _Yin Fen_, so Jem took it regularly to live.

Jem stepped onto the train. "Happy hunger games." He said to Will, clapping him on the shoulder, before walking into one of the trains many rooms, leaving Will standing there, completely alone.

"Are you alright?" Came a female's voice from next to him. Will didn't even turn.

"Hard luck, being chosen again. This is my first year, and god what a year to be chosen." The voice continued.

Will turned, his blue eyes burning. "Can I help you?" He said to her, rather angrily. He realised it was the girl who had been chosen. What was her name again?

She grinned. "Maia Roberts. I knew you at school." She held out her hand.

"Lucky you. Must break your heart to know whatever feelings you hold for me I do not return." He snapped.

"Hatred? Intolerance? 'Cause that's what I feel for you Herondale." She snorted.

Any other time he would have smiled. But now…

"Doors are closing! District two tributes, come to me! We simply _have_ to discuss your schedule!" Came the ridiculously high-pitched voice of their escort.

Will turned around. "Joy unbounded." He muttered, and Maia snickered, as they walked across the train and sat themselves into the empty seats.

Will dropped a flirtatious wink at their escort, resulting in her to become bright red and flustered. _Ah, what a fun journey this shall be_.

"Same old Herondale." Maia sighed to him, to which Will smirked at.

He was a bit happier now, because he was in the midst of hatching a plan to save Jem, and so far it was going well.

**The reaping- district four.**

"Ladies first!" The incredibly purple Escort said from the top of the stage, her lilac hand digging around in the glass bowl atop the table.

She placed a hand on her hand and opened the card she had drawn. "Theresa Gray!" She called, peering into the crowd, her genetically-enhanced violet eyes searching the crowd.

_Shit. Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit…_ Jace thought. "Not Tessa…" He half muttered-half groaned. _God that's ironic she gets chosen and not me._

"And…Owen Aldertree!" The Capitol woman broke Jace's trail of thought.

Jace paused. Two things could happen here. He could stand here, and just hope Tessa would be safe, and let that twelve-year old boy go and be slaughtered, or he could volunteer, and save that boys life, and help Tessas until the end.

The second that thought entered his head he didn't stop to think about the consequences. "I VOLUNTEER AS TRIBUTE!" He called, shoving his way passed the crowds and peacekeepers.

He _will_ save Tessa. _Tessa, Tessa, Tessa, Tessa_.

Jace stopped shoving. You could volunteer, couldn't you? Well, you could normally, but did you volunteer during a quarter quell?

"Well then." The capitol member said, a little puzzled. "A quarter quell volunteer. Someone MUST be eager to win, I don't think THIS has ever happened before. Step up, come on." She brought two fingers forward, gesturing for him to come up.

Jaces golden eyes locked with Tessas big, grey ones.

A few minutes later they were off the podium, heading towards the justice building. "I did this for you Tess. Believe me. You'll get out alive."

She locked eyes with him again. "Idiot. Capitol chooses the victor, remember?"

_Well shit. _Jace thought_. NOW I remember._

"And did you not see the reaping for district two? _William Herondale_ was chosen."

_Well double shit. This would be interesting_. Jace thought again.

"Well then. We'll just have to take him out first, won't we?" Jace said brightly.

"Yeah, good luck with that. His games were the shortest ever on record, he won in a day and a half." She snorted, before going into the door on the left, leaving Jace to go into the door on the right.

Surprisingly, there were people in there.

"Thank-you Jace." Cordelia Aldertree said, sweeping him into a hug. "I have no doubts you'll be the victor, you know."

Mayor, or as the people called him in this town, _Consul _Aldertree appeared behind her. "Yes, thank-you Jace. This feat will never be forgotten. After all, a boy with no family saves a boy whose father is the Consul. It makes perfect sense."

_You think I did it for you_? Jace wanted to yell, and then proceed to punch his fat face, but then again, decided that was his best alibi. Cordelia did know Jace's mother, after all.

So he simply nodded. "Yes, that and the fact I bet Kaylie I'd win this year. So many reasons that I volunteered." He gave his famously arrogant smirk, before a peacekeeper entered the room.

"It's time." He said. Jace nodded, and proceeded to follow him out of the doors.

**A/N: I'm an incredibly lazy person. Remember that. So I made up the first names of the Aldertree family, since I couldn't remember the consuls name. What was it? Josiah? I'm pretty sure it was Josiah. Anyway next chapter- Jace meets Will! **

**Postscript- They won't fight straight away. I'll go in a few more chapters before that. But I have something highly interesting coming up for the Chariot Parade+ Caesar Flickermans interview…**


	4. Blue eyes and eavesdroppers

**PLEASE NOTE! The way some things are set out (capitol rules, reapings, chariot parade, etc) may be different to how Suzanne Collins writes them. Bear that in mind.**

Also note! I know Gabriel is a Lightwood, but I changed that so there wouldn't be all too many Lightwoods in this story!

**Disclaimer: Characters/Rules/Places belong to Suzanne Collins or Cassie Clare. I own the plot.**

The train- Eavesdroppers.

Jace and Tessa had been silent during the walk to the train. Jace stopped her, and put a finger to his lips, showing for her to be quiet. "You never know." He said to her, before quietly opening the train door and steeping inside.

"First volunteer for a quarter quell. Someone to watch out for?" They heard a voice asked.

"Dunno. But the fact that he volunteered showed other districts that they can follow in his example and volunteer. Who else from the list is a possible victoribute?" A second asked.

"Victoribute?" Came the 1st again, sounding amused.

"A victor who can be reaped or can volunteer, thus making them a tribute again." 2nd replied, a hint of arrogance. "Trust me, it'll be a word soon."

"Right…" There was the slightest of silences, before he spoke again. "Victors under eighteen are Isabelle Lightwood, district five and Katniss Everdeen, district twelve."

"What about victors under twenty-one?"

The 1st voice paused. "Victors under twenty-one consist of Sebastian Verlac, district seven, Johanna Mason, district seven, and Gabriel Blackthorn, district eleven."

The second one sputtered. "Gabriel Blackthorn? Him? That piece of-" He seemed to be calm when he spoke again. "Think that's enough information for our eavesdroppers Jem?"

"Plenty. Sure you want to stop now though? Not like you to deny the opportunity to insult Gabriel." Spoke the one whom the 2nd had called Jem.

"Fair point. He is a lousy, vain, and pompous-"

"Don't." Jem said.

"Right." He turned around, and Jace swore under his breath.

"Not the best person to catch us eavesdropping on." He muttered to Tessa, as William Herondales piercing blue gaze set right on Jace and Tessa.

"No, I'm really not am I? But still, you could have told us you were there. We knew straight away, of course, but we figured we'd give you a chance to come out." Will said.

Surprisingly, it was Tessa who spoke up. "If you haven't noticed, this is the games. They don't tend to be about honesty and, you know, letting the enemy see you."

Wills face showed the most arrogant smirk Tessa had ever seen, which was saying something, since she lived with Jace. "The games haven't started yet. If this were the games, you would totally be dead by now." He drew out a small dagger from his belt, and stood up. "Shame we can't even kill until we're in the arena.

Jem, whose head was currently down, writing something, looked up. "Really Will? Do you not pay attention? There's going to be no weapons provided in the games. If you threaten someone do it with a weapon you have made yourself."

Tessa couldn't help but stare at him. He was silver, all silver. Jace was all gold, but this was different. Jaces seemed natural, with tanned skin, and light, sun-bleached hair. This boy on the other hand. It seemed so unnatural. Ghostly, almost…ethereal. His mercury coloured eyes fell onto Tessa, and he smiled. A smile like one that you give a friend you've known for five years. Friendly. Kind. Trusting.

Jace coughed, and all eyes; Gray, Silver and Blue fell onto him.

"If you haven't noticed." He started, his voice dripping sarcasm. "This is the district four Media compartment, and you," His eyes flicked to Jem and then Will, "Are currently in it."

Jem grinned. "Sorry about that. It's just Maia Roberts is currently in the district two compartment, and if Will and her are ever in the same room it _never_ ends well. Camille Belcourt is in the District one compartment, and, rather like Will, she'll either flirt with or kill anything that breaths. And the district three compartment has no T.V, due to the district three tributes taking out the wires and blowing things up with them."

Jace looked at him, as if he were trying to judge him, which, knowing Jace, he was. "There's eight tributes on the train, right?"

Will frowned at the question, and Jems silver eyes narrowed, if only slightly, before he spoke. "Counting yourselves, then yes."

Jace looked thoughtful. "How many are victors?"

Jem looked to Will, who caught it and nodded.

"Three. Myself, Will, and Camille. Unless you are a victor…?" Jem asked, straight to Tessa.

"No _we're_ not." Jace cut in, emphasising the _we're_ to make it clear he had been ignored.

Will turned to Jace. "We know _you're_ not, no one would volunteer to go back to the games." He said with a sneer, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Everyone turned to the noises, coming from quite far away.

"Get in in your head Roberts. I _will_ hunt you in the games. You won't last the first night." A voice hissed.

Another voice laughed. "Oh dear. You can try."

Will sighed happily. "Well Jem, that answers the first question, will Camille want to kill Maia personally?"

_He was called Jem? Well OBVIOUSLY Tessa, he's from district one, they always have names to do with their district. Marvel, Glimmer, Cashmere, Gloss…_ Tessa thought.

Jem nodded, and made a mark in the notebook he was holding. "Hm. I am secretly hoping Maia gets Camille before Camille gets her though. Is that a bad thing?"

Will rolled his eyes. "Yes but if she did we would have to start worrying about her."

"But she's from two, chances are she's trained." Jem pointed out.

"I'm from two!" Will proclaimed.

Jem looked up. "Never said anything bad about it."

"I know, but I was trained, and so were the people I went to school with, Maia being one of them."

"You trained with her?"

Will snorted. "Angel no. She hated me. Just saying, she's in two, and she was in all the sports classes I was in and so on. Chances are she's a career."

Jaces eyes caught Tessas.

"Are you?" Tessa asked, causing Jem and Will to look up from the notebook.

"Are we what?" Will asked her.

"Careers." Jace said.

"The alliance doesn't form like that. It's usually during training. You don't just get reaped and go 'hey! I want to be in the career pack!'" Will said.

"Technically not answering the question." Tessa pointed out.

"We were careers in our games." Jem said before looking to Will. "You know, Camille was arguing with Maia, which means the district one media compartment will be free."

Will nodded. "I asked one of the capitol attendants if they could send Camille's games to us, you know, so we could see her style. Sadly, she's also bringing mine and yours."

Something flashed in Jems eyes. And Tessa, who had been looking at Jem, caught it. It wasn't anger, and it wasn't fear either. It was an odd combination of both.

Will caught it as well. "Don't have to watch yours." He said quickly.

Jem smiled. "I don't see how you can want to watch yours." He said, smiling.

Will shrugged. "Who cares? My games where over in a day and a bit. The highlights mostly consist of me, isn't that a good thing?"

Jem laughed, though it was quick. "Is it the highlights or the games?"

"Highlights." Will said. "At least, that's what I asked for. If she managed to get the actual tapings…"

Jem looked at Will. "I have a suspicion of what the highlights of my games are."

The same look that had been in Jems eyes now flashed in Wills. He hid it pretty quickly though. "A lot of rain?" He suggested, as they made their way to the door, having collected most of their notes.

Jem smiled. "Close enough." He said, good-naturedly, before they walked through the doors.

Jace sank down into the previously vacated seats, Tessa joining him.

"Wonder what happened in Jems games that were so bad." She mused, looking at the television, which was paused on the showing of the district four reaping.

"Well, no one really wants to watch their games again, I suppose."

Tessa looked at him. "No, this was different. It was when Jem said he knew what would be in his highlights…the look on Wills face…"

Jace shrugged. "I don't know." He paused for a bit, before he spoke again. "I suppose we better do what they were doing, you know, planning the games. We could always use those tapes after them." His eyes, which were glazed over (which is what they usually did when he was thinking) unglazed. "Then we could watch Jems games." He suggested, elbowing Tessa.

"S'pose. Guess that's the good thing about this journey. More planning." She smiled at him.

They both sat in the chairs, not speaking to one another, just thinking. It can't have been long, but they were jerked back to reality by a voice in the corridors.

"-will not do, it'll set the schedule back at least one day!" Came the high-pitched voice of a capitol member.

The incredibly purple woman walked in. "I'm your escort, Violet Purl." She said, looking at the two of them, her eyes lingering on Jace. "I'm afraid that the train has to stop for repairs, and it'll take over _5 hours_ to fix!" She squeaked.

Tessa looked to Jace, her eyes full of hope. "Does that mean we can get off the train? Go say goodbye to our friends?" She asked.

Violet frowned. "I suppose you can get off the train, for fresh air of course, but we are far from district four now." Seeing the look on Tessas face, she added "I know! You _barely_ feel a thing on this train!" She turned and left, after telling them something about a good night's rest.

Tessa ran to the window. Sure enough, it was dark outside, and she could no longer see the sea, or smell the salty air. She smelt fumes, possibly from a local factory?

"How long…have we been on the train?" She asked slowly.

Jace frowned. "Dunno. Maybe we fell asleep in the chairs?" He replied dubiously, before he reached out and shut the window Tessa had been leaning out of.

She mirrored Jaces frown. "Possibly…" her frown evaporated. "Reckon those guys are done with the tapes?"

Jace grinned. "Right. Here's the plan." Tessa raised an eyebrow. "We stand at the end of the corridor, and try and listen from there. If we think they've discovered us, we start talking, and walk in, stop our 'conversation'," He made rabbit ears over the word 'conversation.' "And ask for the tapes."

Tessa sighed. "Guess any information's important." She said to him, and they silently made their way down the corridor.


	5. Perfect time for a romantic stroll

**Hola! Welcome to the fandom chicas!**

**Please note! Some aspects of THG, such as interviews, reapings and other miscellaneous events may be different as to how Suzanne Collins writes them!**

**Disclaimer: Ok, I own the plot, Suzanne Collins owns the idea of the games, and Cassie Clare owns most characters, except Suzanne Collins owns the mentors.**

Perfect time for a romantic stroll…

"That's Camille's games then. You know, could be a possibility, if there is a cornucopia, we should take any electrical equipment, because district three could use that to an advantage."

"M-hm. You'd probably figure out how to work it anyways. But what things might be at the cornucopia?"

"When I tell you that, it'll be when there aren't people in the corridor."

Tessa looked at Jace, wide-eyed, who laughed. "Angel Tessa, that is hilarious!"

Tessa stared at him for a second, as if he was insane, before they made their way to the door. "I honestly think that would be the best thing, wouldn't it?"

"I would have loved to see his face when you said that." Jace opened the door.

"Don't bother." Will said, cleaning his fingernails with the dagger.

"With what, laughing?" Jace shot back.

"No. Pretending you weren't listening." Jem said, whose back was to them, as he was picking up a various number of items. "Catch." He said to Will, who caught it in one hand, not even turning to see what it was.

Will glanced at the notebook Jem had thrown him.

"No idea what you mean." Jace said with a smirk.

"No one really laughs once they're chosen. And they don't tend to hang around with other tributes, especially ones from their district. It's best not to get to know them, since you might be the one killing them." Will said, scrawling something down on one of the pages of the notebook.

"So explain to me how you're any different." Jace said, genuine curiosity mixed with sarcasm.

Simultaneously, Jem clutched his right wrist at the same time Will clutched his own. They shot each other a look, before they both dropped their hands.

"I already know Will. Half a week and the games can't change that." Jem said slowly, his attention back onto his notebook.

"Half a week and about five hours." Tessa said with a smile.

Will, who was flicking through the notebook Jem had given him, looked up, his mouth quirking at the corners. "Sorry?" He asked.

"Trains stopped. About five hours delay." Jace said.

Jem and Will shot each other a glance. "Are you allowed off the train?" Jem asked.

"According to our escort then yes." Tessa said to them.

"Five hours." Jem looked at his watch. "That's means we have until 1 in the morning, district five time."

"District five time?" Jace asked. _Where they already near district five_?

Will looked to him, and raised an eyebrow. "Each district is about three-four hours apart, 'cause they're so far away. You not know that?"

"You know, what you said before doesn't explain how you knew we were coming." Tessa said thoughtfully.

"You know, that also wasn't really the topic of discussion." Will started, mimicking Tessas thoughtful tone.

"Will, are we going?" Jem asked him, a jacket in hand.

Jace grinned slightly, and deftly stepped in front of the door. "How did you hear us?"

Jem looked to Will, who shrugged. Jem flicked the back of his notebook and crossed the room to Tessa. He began to draw, and she looked at the note book in fascination.

"Sound travels, and further in quiet or empty spaces. Because that corridor is completely empty, with no furniture and the likes, then any noise will echo. Your footfalls included. Will and myself have exceptionally good hearing, you tend to develop it during the games. At this point-" He made a large mark on the paper. "Your footsteps stopped, and it would be around the time that Wills voice would have come into earshot." He then started explaining something, using so many scientific words that Tessa and Jace soon had no idea what he was on about. He finished talking and drawing and looked up.

"You see, you could have just told then we had good hearing." Will said, leaning against the door frame.

"Yes, but they wouldn't have believed us, or they would ask us to explain." Jem said, closing the notebook.

Will looked at the notebook, evidently wanting to know what Jem had drawn. Jem tossed it to him, and Will looked at it, his frown deepening the longer he stared at the drawing.

By the angel. I swear Jem, you could be from district three. It'd make more sense. At least you have neat handwriting, so you can actually read it, even if you can't understand what it means."

"I find a flaw with the idea I'm from three." Jem said mildly.

"Oh really?" Will said with mock-disbelief. "You've found a flaw in one of _William Herondales_ theories?"

Jem rolled his eyes. "Better get used to it Will, because I just can't see the word 'victoribute' catching on."

Will glared at him. "Better be a pretty good flaw." He started.

"My name, Will." Jem said simply.

"Fair point. We should make it less…district one sounding. How about Jim? Jimothy? James? Oh, I like James. James Carstairs, has a ring to it, doesn't it?"

Jem pressed his palms to his eyes.

"I like that last one. Unless you made his first name begin with a C. And, you know, made it alliteration-y sounding." Jace said.

Jem lowered his hands. "You have _no_ _idea_ what you just started."

There was a banging on the door. "William Herondale! Since our fucking escort can't _be_ _bothered_ to come and tell you, I have to tell you myself. The trains going to be repaired in three hours."

"Ever-charming, Maia." Will called back.

"M-hm. Eat your heart out." Tessa understood what Jem said about the footsteps, you could hear Maia walking back down the hall.

Tessa and Jace laughed, Jem smiled and Will smirked. Jem looked at Will, a question in his eyes.

"No, you?" Will asked.

_Wait, what? Did I miss what Jem said? How the hell did that happen? Did Will read Jems mind? _Tessa thought.

Jem snorted. "Of course. Because I'll totally leave you in the arena."

Will punched the air in victory. "Herondale theories- one point!"

"As opposed to the eight I've gained just today from proving them all wrong? Nine if you count this." Jem pointed out. "Come on, we've got until 10 o'clock, meaning we will have to be back on the train at 9." He and Will turned to walk by the door.

Jem stopped. "Should we tell them?"

Will looked at him as if he were insane. "Not our problem."

Jem smiled. "*Cough* Karma *Cough*"

"Really? You were in the games and you believe in Karma?"

Jem brushed his hair out of his eyes, as if trying to draw Wills attention to it.

Will looked like someone had just slapped him. "Fine." He looked away, at the floor, as if he was ashamed.

"Tell us what?" Jace and Tessa said at the same time.

"Rules of the Capitol train journeys. Come on." Jem said, and gestured for them to come out of the doors.

Jace shrugged and followed them, and Tessa followed Jace.

"Rule one. Manners. Never forget them, especially around your Escort." Will said, and they walked down the empty corridor. Tessa might have been imagining it, but she was sure that Jem and Will weren't making noise as they were walking.

"Rule two. Respect tables. Never throw knifes at them. Especially Mahogany tables." Jem said, as they walked down another corridor, the amount of them was ridiculous. This one, however, had chandeliers in the ceiling, and a white carpet on the floor, that matched the white chairs and chess tables they passed every now and then. However, upon looking closely, she saw that they were odd. There were 24 pieces, yet the chess pieces seemed to look human.

"Is this a chess board?" She said, interrupting Wills long-winded third rule.

"Yes. Although it's been altered to look more like the games." Said Will.

"These-" Jem pointed to eight pieces, two on each side. They were rather small "Are the tributes who are only about 12-13. They can only move one space at a time, which means they are captured rather quickly, which tends to be the case with the real games."

"Not necessarily. Didn't Isabelle Lightwood win when she was thirteen?" Tessa asked him.

"Well yes, but it's not a common occurrence." Jem replied.

"You won when you were fourteen." Will pointed out.

"There's a big difference between twelve and fourteen." Jace said, smirking.

"What about these?" Tessa pointed to some other figures on the board. There were three on each side. They were much taller than the 'young tributes.' They also had strong muscles, and had a variety of weapons either in their hands, or tucked into a belt, sticking out of a backpack/rucksack.

"Careers." Will said simply. "Can move three on their first go, any direction, and two after that.

Tessa peered at a figure closely. It looked like Finnick Odair, district fours most famous tribute. They weren't coloured, but one side was made of glass and the other marble. But they had certain features. If they had dark hair their hair would be dark. Dark skin and their skin would be dark. "Are these modelled after tributes?" She asked.

Will sighed happily. "Hardly anyone ever figures that out. Gold star." He said sarcastically. He pointed to another figure, which had a small crown, made out of what looked like real gold, on top of wild dark hair. "That's me."

He pointed to the one Tessa had looked like Finnick, who also had a crown, though he must have been on the other team, because whilst Wills figure was made of glass, Finnicks was made of marble. "That's Finnick Odair."

"Why do you have a crown?" Jace snorted.

"Victor. Can move any number of squares, any direction. Me and Finnick are the most famous tributes there ever where, that's why we are the victors on the board." Will said cheerfully.

"Are you on there?" Tessa asked Jem.

He nodded.

"Wait! Got an idea!" Will said. "Spot Jem, and we'll tell you one thing, though it can be anything you need to know."

Jace grinned. "Easy. But you can't lie or give a vague answer."

Will mirrored his grin. "Well, you get thirty seconds starting now."

Tessa stared at some other figures. "What are these?"

"Extras. The ones who are usually killed at the start, during the fight at the Cornucopia." Jem said.

"2o seconds." Will announced cheerfully.

Tessa looked at the figures, eliminating all the ones with dark hair, and eliminating all the girls. _Jems got light hair, and he's a boy. _Tessa thought.

"5 seconds. 4 seconds. 3 seconds. 2 seconds. 1 second…." Will counted. "And…..none." He finished dramatically.

Jaces eyes met Wills. "He's not on there."

Jem looked down, and Wills face turned cold, as he pointed to one of the careers, with slightly long, _dark_ hair just falling into his eyes. He didn't look as menacing as the other careers though, and his face looked thoughtful, not cruel.

"But…Your hair isn't black." Tessa pointed out.

"Really? We had no idea. Jem, did you know your hair isn't black?" Will said, fake shock on his face.

Jem rolled his eyes. "A printing error the Capitol never bothered to fix." He said, brushing his _silver_ hair from his eyes.

Will looked at him, as if puzzled, but he hid it with a smirk. "Come on. May as well finish the rules."

They set off again down the corridor, but stopped shortly at a door. Will shoved it open, and he and Jem jumped out.

_Yet again_. Tessa thought. _No noise._

Will gestured for them to follow. "Come on! We never finished telling you the rules."

Jace jumped out, and Tessa saw a pale hand reach out. She took it and jumped down. Then she saw the hand belonged to Jem. "Thanks." She said, and looked out at the night. It was calm, yet the air was thick with pollution.

"Kind of looks like those old photos of Victorian Britain." Tessa said.

Jem followed her gaze. "Britain." He sighed wistfully.

"Jems family originated from Britain and China." Will told them.

"Does that explain your accent?" Tessa asked curiously.

Jem laughed. "My accents a bit of everything. Another thing that makes me different." He said, sub-consciously brushing his hair from his eyes.

"Where are you taking us?" Jace asked them.

Will turned around. "Midnight stroll. What could be a better way for me to confess my undying love for you?"

Jem rolled his eyes as Tessa sputtered and Jace frowned.

"Wondered how long it would take you to say something like that." Jem said, as they kept walking.

Jace tripped over something on the track. He stooped down and picked it up, and no one seemed to notice except Tessa as he drew it into his cloak.

"Reckon this is far enough?" Will asked Jem.

"I think so. Even with a strong breeze, and the strength of a Capitol listening device, I think if we face away from the train-" Jem replied.

Tessa tuned him out again, as his words became longer and more scientific.

Jace nudged her, bringing her attention back to the conversation.

"So…what you're saying is…?" Jace said, bringing all eyes onto him.

"The rules of the Capitol are bullshit." Will said simply.

Jem frowned. "Well, they're not, and we recommend you stick to them, but we needed an excuse to get you off the train."

"Because…?" Jace said impatiently.

"The trains bugged. It's got recording devices set all around it. You have to watch what you say." Will said seriously.

"You got proof?" Jace asked him, eyes narrowing again.

Will shrugged. "Better safe than sorry. And there was always Suede."

Tessa frowned. "Isn't that a type of clothing?" She remembered Katniss Everdeens 'Talent' being aired on TV. How she was pointing out feathered gloves and sequined hats to _suede_ trousers and cotton tops.

Jem laughed. "It's a fabric, yes. But it was also the name of a tribute from District one, three years ago."

"Jem was her mentor for the games, and she liked to complain loudly about how stupid the games where. She was different to her other district partner, because she didn't want to be in the career pack, had no desire to train before reapings." Will said.

"She was only twelve." Jem pointed out.

Will shrugged. "So? I started training at ten. Anyway, the second she got into the games, a fireball came out of nowhere, the second she stepped off the podium, and killed her."

"A coincidence?" Tessa asked.

Jem shook his head. "The capitol are cruel, but they don't kill for no reason. The footage was, of course, deleted from the games, so viewers never saw it, everyone just thought she was killed in the bloodbath at Cornucopia."

"So how do you know about it?" Jace said, his gold eyes narrowed.

"She was in my games, I saw the whole thing." Will said.

Tessa did a quick calculation. "Wait, Jem. Will said you won your games at fourteen. Doesn't that mean you were only about fifteen as a mentor? I mean, you don't look older than 18."

Jem laughed. "That's what you're thinking about? But I was chosen to be a mentor that year, because I was the most recent winner." He looked at the watch on his wrist. Tessa saw a scrawl of black on his wrist. A tattoo? "By the angel, Will it's half nine, we have to get back on the train."

Wills eyes flashed, and he checked his own watch. Again, Tessa saw a scrawl on his wrist as well.

_Isn't that the wrist they both gripped when I asked them how they heard me and Jace coming?_ Tessa thought.

"But…we have to talk about the-" Will started, his hand holding his wrist again.

Jem shook his head. "If you want me to win, it's pointless Will. You know Snow hates me, and you know the only reason I'm alive is because my life is the only thing that could persuade you to-" he broke off and shook his head again. "If you leave this earth, I will follow shortly after."

Will turned away from Jem, and seemed to only just remember Jace and Tessa. He swore, and in a language Tessa didn't know.

"I need to talk to you." He said shortly, to Jace. They both walked rather quickly, far from earshot, leaving Jem and Tessa alone.

He smiled at her. "I guess we should walk back too."

Tessa smiled back. "Jem, can I ask you something?" She said, as they made their way back to the train.

He looked thoughtful. "It depends what you ask, for I'm sorry to say that this is the games, and I don't want someone who knows me well have to be the one to kill me."

"You don't plan on winning?" Tessa asked him.

"You didn't hear mine and Wills conversation? I don't see the point in me trying to win, the capitol chooses the victor. Camille is incredibly popular in the capitol, and I suppose you know about Wills reputation, whilst I am just one of the many victors. I don't see my chances in winning."

"Oh." Was all Tessa said. Something about Jems expression told her he was lying. "Can I ask you the question then?"

The train was in sight now. "Fire away." Jem said.

"Why do all people from district one have odd names? Names like Cashmere and Gloss, and the tributes from last year were called Glimmer and Marvel, and you were just telling me about Suede."

"And you seem to think that mine isn't odd?" He asked, but it seemed to be out of genuine curiosity.

"How do you even spell it? Is it G-e-m?" Because the way everyone seems to pronounce your name, it's different to the way someone would say Gem."

He smiled slightly. "It's J-e-m." He said. Tessa couldn't help but be enchanted whenever he spoke, the same as Will, their accents were so different to the familiar drawl of a district-four accent.

"And I suppose the names we give are down to pride. That's why the names get less district-related as it goes down, for I suppose to live in twelve is not a good thing. But district one- Well, it's the wealthiest district, apart from two, and we are the first district, right hand to the capitol." He said, as if it was the first time he had really thought about it. "But you never notice just how odd our names are until you get outside the districts. It's probably the same to the capitol. To us they seem to dress oddly, but to them it's just the fashion."

"What's district one like? From the victory tours and reapings they show, it seems so…clean…and white."

Jem stopped, and started moving the dirt over a word in the mud. _Earshot. _It was written in a scrawl, it was barely legible. "Will." He said simply, and stepped through the now distorted word.

_What did that mean? Was that Wills handwriting? _Tessa thought, puzzled.

"District one, I suppose the only way to describe it is…fancy. Like you would describe four as picturesque, the Capitol as Large and Breath-taking, or District twelve as small, or dirty." He paused for a second, before he added. "You'll be mind-blown when you see the Capitol, and all the people. It's a sight one never forgets."

One? Who said that nowadays? Still, who acted like Jem nowadays? He was polite and considerate. He didn't belong in the games, or in the capitols rule. He was a light in the dark. He was different.

He opened the door of the train and stepped inside, before extending his hand to Tessa to help her up the small step. She took it, and she noticed how warm the skin was. It seemed like fire.

"Thank-you." She said.

He nodded, before turning to the two figures in front of them, who Tessa hadn't even noticed.

"I recommend you shut up. Now." Will said to Jace.

"Recommend all the hell you want. Is something the matter, Herondale? Used to people bending over backwards to help you? This is the games, I can insult you all I want."

Jem moved forwards, and was by Will, just as Will started towards Jace.

"Will." He said, stepping between him and Jace. "Stop. Can't it wait until the arena?"

Will snorted. "The hell it can." He moved to knock Jem aside, yet when his skin came in contact with Jems he paused. "You're burning." He said shortly.

"I'm fine I've had-"

"To hell with that Jem, I've been with you all day, and I never saw you take it." Will snarled, and seized Jems arm. "Come on."

"Will." There was something about the force in Jems words that made him turn around. "The more often it's taken the more often it's needed."

"And you're grand solution was to have nothing? I thought you were smart." Will said poisonously, pulling Jem away.

Jace raised an eyebrow.

Tessa turned to him. "What was that about?" She asked him.

"Well, it seems Jem-" Jace started.

"Not that. What did Will want to talk to you about?"

"Miscellaneous crap." Jace said.

"Oh." Was all Tessa replied. "Jace, what did you pick up off the track before?"

Jace smirked. "We need to get the tapes from the district one room. If I'm right, I'll tell you."

Tessa rolled her eyes, and followed him. Jem and Wills voices could be heard again.

"That's not how it works! Surely you of all people know that, you witnessed it in your games!" A voice yelled from the corridor.

"Will-"

Jace smirked to Tessa, they hadn't seemed to hear them coming, and Tessa wanted to know what was going on as much as Jace did. They kept walking.

"Will I have to chain myself to you to make sure you take it?" Will asked shortly.

"I'm taking it now." Jems voice said calmly.

"Because I've asked you to!" Will shouted again, though when he spoke it was calm. "Jem, your all I have. You can't leave."

"There can only be one victor, Will." Jem stopped when the door opened, and Tessa and Jace walked in.

Wills cheeks were flushed, yet Jem looked as he always did. He set down the empty glass he was holding.

"You could have knocked." Will said shortly.

"We saw no point, you usually hear us coming." Jace said calmly.

"Yes, but Jem isn't usually being an idiot." Will said, his eyes blazing.

Jem looked at him. Will caught it and looked away, his face set differently.

Tessa also saw it, and recoiled, even though it wasn't aimed at her. The look made her blood run cold, and her skin prickle. It was a different Jem who had just looked at Will then. And that Jem had been terrifying.

"We need the tapes, the highlights." She said quickly.

"Oh, of course. We said we'd give them you, didn't we?" Jem said, his eyes sparking, his face set kindly. He stood up to get them, and coughed. He brought his hand to his mouth quickly, and his other hand got a handkerchief from his pocket, and however quickly he managed to clean his fingers, everyone saw the red on his hand.

Wills jaw tightened, and he got to the box before Jem did. He thrust Jace the box, and cast a glance at Jem.

"We should go. Camille-" Will started.

Jem laughed, but it was hollow. "As if she doesn't know."

"Yes, but-" Will stopped, seeing Tessa and Jace were still there. "Anything else?" He said, and his jaw tightened as soon as he closed it.

Jace opened his mouth but Tessa got there first. "No, thanks." She turned and walked from the room, dragging Jace with her. "Have a good evening." She said politely.

Jem sighed. "I doubt it." He said, to no one in particular, before going through into a door opposite the one Tessa was walking out of.

Will turned on his heel.

"Happy hunger games." Jace called after him, grinning.

Will seemed to crumble, right then, before he composed himself and turned to face them.

"May the odds be _ever_ in your favour." He said sarcastically, before going into the room Jem had just gone into, picking up Jems empty glass as he went.


	6. Queries and Theories

**I wrote a bunch of replies to questions i'd been asked, they're at the end. Im sorry about the bad grammar whilst its just authors notes, its only the actual stories I bother checking. And believe me, it takes a while.**

**Disclaimer: I'm going with a no for the characters, and a yes for the plot. Oh, I forgot! I own Suede, the girl mentioned in the previous chapter.**

**I'll upload once a week, but when I get a review/follower/favourite I'll upload the next/same day. Even if I've already uploaded that day. Is that a nice blackmail or what?!**

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Theories.

Jace smirked at the box of tapes as he and Tessa walked back down the hall.

"I was right. Again." He said, as he looked down into the box.

Tessa frowned. She would have usually said a sarcastic remark about him, but now her mind was preoccupied.

She opened the door to the district four compartment.

"What about?" She asked him, as Jace set the box onto the table.

Jace drew his hand into his jacket, and pulled out the black object he had tripped over.

Tessa looked at it.

It was a tape, with a label that had been scrawled over.

Jace gestured to the box, where the two tapes in there were labelled. "That's Will's games." He pointed to one. "And that's Camille's."

Tessa frowned. She knew where this was going.

"And this." Jace looked at the tape in his hands. "Must be Jems."

Tessa looked at the tape with loathing. "There was a reason it had been thrown out, Jace. A reason we shouldn't watch it."

Jace frowned. "Tessa, we need _all_ the help we can get. Even if it means watching a tape that everyone seems to fear." He set it in the box, along with the others. "Tessa, before, I asked a capitol attendant why everyone seems to hate Jems games. She told me that it holds the record for the most disturbing games on record, and that it's incredibly hard to find a copy of them now. Whatever happened in those games, we have to find out. It's the quarter-quell this year, and they aren't taken lightly."

Tessa glanced at the box. She really did want to watch it, but she knew she shouldn't. "I still don't think we should. When we first got onto the train, the look in Jems eyes when Will said they had a copy of his games, and the way Will reacted when Jem said he knew what his highlights would be. Later, when Will said no one laughs once their chosen, and you asked them how they were different, they both gripped their wrists. How a moment later, once Maia had left, Will seemed to know what Jem had asked him, without Jem saying anything. When he and Will were talking about Karma, Jem brought Wills attention to his hair, and Will looked as if somebody had slapped him. Those chess pieces before, Jems piece, the way Will seemed confused when Jem just said it was an error. The capitol _don't_ _make_ errors. When we were off the train, and they checked the time, I saw a mark on their wrists, the same wrist they grabbed before. _The way Will reacted when Jems skin was burning, how they were talking about Jem needing something_. " Tessa said, emphasizing the last sentence.

"When we went to get the tapes, Will was saying that wasn't how something worked and that Jem should know because it was in his _games_. Jem told him to stop talking about it, that he was taking it. And Will said Jem was only taking it because he asked him to." Jace said slowly.

Tessa nodded. "You saw him coughing blood, Jace."

Jace looked from her to the tapes. "Tessa, we have to watch it. Not out of curiosity this time, but because we have to know what the Capitol might be planning for the quarter quell."

Tessa nodded. "I know your right, but can it not at least wait until tomorrow?"

Jace nodded. "I know you don't want to watch them. I'll watch Will and Camille's tonight, and tell you what I learn."

Tessa exhaled. "Thanks Jace." She opened the nearest door, and sure enough it was a bedroom. She went in and closed the door behind her. She looked at the wardrobe, because the doors were open, and she saw a variety of dresses and shirts and skirts. She recognised a jacket designed by Katniss Everdeen. But she didn't see a single pair of trousers.

She walked over to the bed. It was a double, with a silk cover and sheets. She raised her eyebrow at it, it was much fancier that she was used to.

Her eyes wandered to the silk pyjamas on the covers, and felt like crying. They were a deep blue, the colour of the ocean back in district four. She threw them on the floor, and got into the bed, silently crying, not even bothering to get undressed.

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**I am replying to questions and reviews I have received right now! **

From- a guest: Thank- you for complimenting my correct grammar! I proofread about three times to check, so it made my day that somebody noticed! Also, you asked me if I will kill off all the characters. **This depends on YOU GUYS who are reading right now! **Should I go all Catching-Fire and break out a few, or just make one victor? Tell me through PM or reviews please!

From- her0ngray: Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you and thank-you! Reading this review reminded me to write that there will be **no Clace** or in this story, but a small bit of Jessa and Wessa are a definite, and the odd line or two of Malec, Sizzy and Gideon+Sophie!

From- a guest: Thank you! I'll be adding all the teen characters, minus Cecily, because Snow killed Wills loved ones (his curse, all those he loves will die? Get it?) Also, you asked me to keep continuing. Don't worry, I wasn't going anywhere!

From- a guest: Nice to know there's a Jessa out there, I never seem to find you guys among the tidal wave of Wessas (I'm a Jillessa, so bring in whatever side!) And you noticed all my links! It took _for ever_ sorting out which district everyone should be from, thank-you for noticing! Also, you asked if Jem could be sassy for a bit. **HELL YAH**! In fact, that request inspired me to write a chapter about Jems games, so that's when he has his sassiness, during interviews and the likes.


	7. Blood and dreams

**Nightmares- The brain is a wonderful thing. A nightmare may simply be an alternate reality, yet no one dare prove they exist, for fear of the realm coming to life.**

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Ok, it was in a story I read when I was about seven, and the lines have been carved (ouch) into my brain ever since. Why shouldn't I write a chapter about everyone's nightmares?

P.s: I had _no_ _idea_ why I read it, it confused me, for I didn't understand the words. If anyone recognises that quote, tell me, I'd love to be able to read the book again, yet I no longer remember the title.

Chapter four- Blood and dreams.

_Bang! Bang! Bang! _

_The sound of the cannon nearly shattered Tessas ears as it went off again, symbolising another three had fallen._

_She saw a flash of golden hair in front of her, and ran towards it, calling Jaces name. He turned, and began to run towards her, only for his path to be blocked by two boys. One plunged a dagger into Jaces chest, and Jace fell, his shirt becoming soaked with red._

_"Jace!" She screamed, running even faster, willing herself to get to him, to maybe even save him._

_The two boys turned around, and they both grinned demonically at her. The black haired one passed the dagger (still dripping with Jaces blood) towards his silver friend, whose usually kind, silver eyes now looked harsh and menacing with the chaos around him._

_"Jem?" She whispered, in disbelief. Jem wouldn't do that, would he? __**Could**__ he? He wouldn't, couldn't take an innocent life. Not Jem._

_"Hello, Tessa." He said, his voice void of any emotion._

_Tessa barely had time to register the oddness of his voice, before she caught a flash of a silver blade, being thrown directly at her heart._

Tessa screamed as her eyes flew open. She willed herself to stop, glancing around at the unfamiliar room she was in. She reminded herself where she was. _Just_ _a_ _dream_. She told herself, curling herself up into a ball. _It was just a dream_.

_"I know what you're trying to do." Will said to Jace, as they walked back to the train._

_"Oh really? What is that exactly?" Jace asked him, as they neared the train._

_Will kept walking. "You volunteered to help your district partner win, and throughout the games you are going to keep her with you at all times, and in the end you're going to make sure she wins."_

_Jace looked at him in pure shock. "How do you-"_

_"Because your plan is the same as mine, except I want to save Jem." Will turned to face him, his expression serious. "And it's Jems plan to save me."_

_Jace was curious. "What's the deal with you and Jem? You're both from different districts, you _definitely_ don't have the same personalities,"_

_"Jem is like my brother." Will said sharply. "And I would do anything to save him, anything at all." They both got onto the train. "I don't want to live without him."_

_Jace stole a glance at him. "And don't you think he thinks the same? Do you think he would want to live without you?"_

_Will caught him looking, and glared. "Jem has other people in his life. He is honest and kind, respectful and innocent. As for myself? I'm bitter, cruel, sharp and __**anything**__ but innocent. Give me one reason he doesn't deserve to live."_

_Jace ignored this, mainly because he couldn't think of a reason. "But what's to say he wouldn't follow you if he died? It'd be pointless trying to save him, wouldn't it just be better to let him die?"_

_Will looked murderous._

_ Shit. Jace thought. I've angered William Herondale. This'll be interesting._

_"I recommend you shut up. Now." Will said to Jace._

_"Recommend all the hell you want. Is something the matter, Herondale? Used to people bending over backwards to help you? This is the games, I can insult you all I want." Jace replied with a smirk, but on the inside his blood was cold. He knew he had gone too far, and from what little he knew about Jem, he knew Will was right. There was no reason he didn't deserve to live. If Tessa wasn't in these games, Jace might have even helped Will save Jem._

_"Will. Stop." Jem said, suddenly appearing, and stepping between him and Will. "Can't it wait until the arena?_

_"The hell it can." Will said, and started towards Jace._

Jace opened his eyes. He hadn't been asleep…just thinking about what Will had said to him earlier, as they were going back to the train. His mind wandered to Jems tape, which he hadn't watched, and Wills, which he had. He remembered the end, where all the mentors from the games shake the victor's hand. He remembered the way Will had looked to Jem when Jem stepped up to shake his hand. Jems hair had had black streaks in it, which was curious. But what was more curious was the way Jem had shaken his head at Will, after shaking hands, and stepped away, leaving Will looking crestfallen (Although he hid it quickly) and quite confused.

Jace smiled at his daydream. He wanted to know what was going on between those to. He had to.

_Silver. Of course. It was the colour Jem had most loved as a boy, he had loved the way it glinted magically in the light, so different to the dullness of bronze, the bold, tackiness of Gold. It was subtle, yet beautiful. His mother had always said he suited the colour so well when he wore it._

_He wondered what his mother would say now. Silver was no longer an enchanting colour to a young boy. It was the greatest fear of a young man._

_Silver didn't suit him, not like this. It made him thinner, weaker, paler. The deep ebony of his hair, once almost as dark as Wills, had become paler and paler, its colour draining as the Yin Fen had dominated his body. Jem had become used the constant tiredness and lack of energy you found yourself with, due to the drug. He had grown accustomed to the bitter-sweet taste of water, because the only time he'd drink water was to take the drug. Or 'medicine' as some people, mainly Will, had taken to calling it, especially when somebody heard Jem and Will debating about Jem taking it, and asked him what he needed._

_Medicine doesn't make you worse. Medicine doesn't drain the life-force from your body, day-by-day. Jem knew Will was jealous of him, but to be honest, he didn't know why. It can't really be much of a life to be in a bed that wasn't your own, night after night, but at least it was a life. Soon Will would get older, and could settle down, live his life until the end. _

_Would Jem be able to do that?_

_No._

_Another thing he was asked is why he is always so calm. There were two answers-both of them true._

_Being stressed, shouting or raising his voice usually resulted in a coughing fit._

_Or there was the fact that Jem didn't really see the point of arguing. The second point being the one he always answered with. If someone has the nerve to point out he used to be sarcastic before his games while Will is standing next to him… Usually all he'll manage to do is give a cocky answer or a small insult, or both, before Jem'd have to distract him. But there __**was**__ the time with Gabriel Blackthorn. Jem found his consciousness slipping, as he fell asleep._

_A young, silver haired girl crouched coughing on the floor. Jem was shocked. It was usually Will on the floor having an attack, not a girl. In his dream, his vision rotated. If Jem was shocked before, it was nothing to how he felt now. The girl was Tessa. Her usually pale skin was now a lifeless colour like Jems was, her eyes clenched in pain. She opened them, gasping, her hands digging into the white carpet, stained red with blood._

_Her eyes. Her large grey eyes that Jem had found so beautiful were now a fine silver. But not a deep mercury like Jems where on a good day. They were almost white. _

_Jem heard screaming, but it wasn't from Tessa. It was instantly recognisable, and enough to bring him back to consciousness._

"That. That is the reason I don't like to sleep at night." Jem muttered, before turning to Will, who was asleep in a chair, screaming to high hell.

"Will." He muttered, shaking Will. "Will, wake up. Will, you're dreaming. Wake up."

_He stared in disbelief, unable to move, as the tall, blond haired tribute walked towards Jem. He then realised what was happening. He also realised a barrier lay between them, thick and solid, and no way to get past it._

_Jem was still on the floor, still coughing, the lack of the drug taking its toll on him. Camille sauntered over to him, a sharp stone in her hand. She placed it towards Jem and smiled. _

_"Happy hunger games." She whispered, before she smashed the stone into his head._

_Only then did the barrier break, and Will was able to move. He leaped onto Camille, not caring that he was unarmed, only wanting to seek vengeance for what she had done._

_"Will!" She screamed, as he kicked her in the face. "Will, stop!" He smirked. As if he would. She would pay for this. "Will, wake up!" She said again._

_"What?" Will stopped attacking Camille, as everything began to fade. _

_"Will, you're dreaming. Wake up." Camille said, softer this time, less panicked._

Will opened his eyes, finally recognising the voice. "Jem." He said, his voice still thick from sleep, as he threw himself at his blood brother, forcing him into a hug.

"Will?" Jem said, half laughing, half worried.

They broke apart. "Since when was it you who had the bad dreams and not me?" He asked in wonder, as they embraced again.

Once again, they broke apart, Will only just remembering what had happened. He had been watching over Jem as he slept, he must have fallen asleep in the chair.

"We may as well get up properly. No point in either of us trying to get back to sleep." Jem said, frowning slightly.

Will stiffened. "You had a bad dream?" Damn. He was always there for Jem when he had a bad dream, and this time he wasn't.

He smiled. "Nothing new or overly terrifying. I was actually awoken by your screams."

Will scowled. "I don't scream."

Jems smile broadened. "Herondale theories- still one point, whilst Carstairs' have now gained 10."

Will threw a pillow at him. "Shut up. What time is it?"

Jem looked at his watch. "Half six in the morning, district five time."

Will closed his eyes. "Jem, you're like a brother to me. I respect you. But we _have_ to get this early-morning thing sorted out."

Jem laughed, and threw the pillow back at him, which Will put over his face.

"Come on." He said good naturedly, walking out of the room.

_"Mom? Dad?" Maia asked, staring at the two people in front of her, who, right before her eyes, seemed to melt. One got taller, much taller, his skin lighter and his hair darker. The other got younger, shorter, yet the look in his eyes was just as frightening as the one the other had._

_"Nope." Jordan Kyle said, drawing a dagger from his belt._

_"Did you miss us, Maia?" Daniel said, staring at her the way he always had. Like he wanted to kill her._

_"But you're dead. Both of you. You've died in the games." Maia whispered, as Daniel drew an arrow and loaded his bow._

_"Aw, really, sis?" Daniel asked. "I thought you would have been happier to see your brother. But then again, I said I'd kill you, didn't I? All I'm doing is keeping that promise."_

_They both took a step towards Maia, both their weapons aiming at her. _

_The world went black._

Maia woke up, covered in sweat. "Just a bad dream." She muttered to herself, but she was still shaken by what she saw. Looking at the clock on her bedside table, she saw it was only 8 o'clock.

"Seriously?" She muttered to herself, but rose anyway to take a shower. Whenever she had a bad dream, she could never get back to sleep, and she was always more annoyed at them than scared. They meant she always had to get up.

**Yes, it's short, but I really wanted to dive into the characters as I write them. I apologise for the length of this one and the last chapter, but I've got a ****_really_**** long one coming up. And it has Finnick. Yeah, you heard me. Finnick. Am I forgiven yet? Also, Camille didn't have a nightmare. She's hardcore. She don't have time for nighmares!**


	8. Early-risings, faults and reapings

**Y'all ready for some Finnick-and-Will-being-best-mates-action? I thought so. Though the fic only has a T rating, so I'm sorry but they aren't in love. Not in this story anyway….**

**The length of this one makes up for the others, I swear. And, like I've pointed out before, FINNICK FTW!**

**Disclaimer: I own the plot, nothing else.**

Morning. Welcome to district five.

When Jace had finally decided there was no way he could get back to sleep, it was only seven o'clock. After having a hot shower (and concluding that all the soap smelt horrible) he wandered back into the main room of the district four suite.

_What do I do? _He thought.

That thought quickly vanished when he saw the note on the mat by the door. Frowning, he went over and picked it up.

_Straight down the corridor, turn left, and then left again. You'll find yourself in the breakfast hall. Please come as soon as you read this, need to discuss the games. :-)_

_-Finnick Odair. (Mentor.)_

Jace smiled slightly. Good. He had Finnick for a mentor. Finnick was ever-popular back in the Capitol, he would be able to secure Tessas place as victor.

He rooted in the draws until he found some sello-tape, and stuck the note to the door, so Tessa would defiantly see it. He also grabbed a pen and wrote _I'm already there- Jace :) _

It annoyed Jace when people put noses on their smiley faces. He didn't know why, but it did.

He opened the door quietly and closed it behind him softly, so as to not disturb the note or wake Tessa. He then went straight down the corridor, turned left, and then turned left again. Surprised at how quickly he found it, he opened the door to see Finnick, Jem and Will sitting at the table. The sun was shining in brightly through the windows, making Jem and Finnicks hair glow brighter than ever, making Wills seem impossibly dark against them.

All three of them turned to face him.

Jace frowned. "How long have you been here?" He asked Jem and Will.

Jem glanced at his watch. "About an hour."

Jace looked shocked. "And I thought _I_ was getting up early!" He said, causing Jem and Finnick to laugh and for Will to frown slightly.

"See Jem? Get up with _him_ in the future, and leave me to sleep, so I won't have to have pillows thrown at my _beautiful_ face."

Jace snorted. "That's one word for it."

Will smirked. "I can think of many heart-broken women in the Capitol who will disagree with that statement, especially since I-"

"Will." Jem said sharply.

Finnick and Will laughed, and Jace frowned again.

"Am I missing something? Are you their mentor as well?" He said sourly. He knew how stupid it sounded, but he couldn't help it. He had to find a way to help Tessa win.

Finnick and Will shrugged, and Jem smiled. "Cashmere isn't even up yet, neither is Brutus, Wills mentor." Jem said, looking towards Will.

Will nodded. "Besides, it's not like anything they have to say will be overly useful. It's not like any of them have won a quarter quell-" He broke off, and glanced to Jem.

"Haymitch." They both said together, and Jem stood up.

"I'm sure his name was on one of the tapes in that storage room." Jem said thoughtfully.

Will nodded. "Yes, but he won't be a mentor this time for twelve. It'll be Katniss, she's the most recent winner."

Jem smiled. "Doubt it. She wants nothing to do with the games anymore."

Finnick frowned. "That doesn't mean anything. No one wants anything to do with them the first year. Or any after. Well, except maybe Will…" He broke off, his trail of thought gone.

Jem brushed his hair from his eyes. "Irrelevant. I know Haymitch, I met him on my victory tour. We had a lot in common."

Will shot him a thoughtful look. "Really? You, and Haymitch, a lot in common? I'd love to see one thing that you have in common with-" he broke off, and glared at Jem. "No. Jem, that's not- It isn't the same-"

Jem snorted. "Of course it's the same. Why isn't it?"

Finnick was giving Jem the same look Will was. "You didn't really have a choice in the matter."

Jems silver eyes flicked onto him. "Of course I did. I could have chosen not to drink it."

Will raised his eyebrows. "And then died of dehydration? Jem, anybody would have-"

"Had enough common sense to know to test it. It could have even been poisonous, or-" Jem started.

Will slumped back into his chair, knowing he was beaten.

"I'm going to go look. See you later, Finnick?" He said, his good nature returning.

Finnick smiled. "Maybe when I'm finished telling Jace _everything_ he wants to know. Considering, you know, I'm _his_ mentor and not yours or Wills."

Will smirked, and Jem grinned. "William, Jace has a _mentor_, believe it or not. As much as your presence adds to the atmosphere, I rather think that Jace wants to talk to _his_ _mentor_ alone, because Finnick is _Jaces_ _mentor_ after all." He said, before he turned and left. Wills smirk became a grin.

Jace stared after him. _Jem? Sarcastic? Did I miss something? Is he suddenly Will_? He thought, before he sat down in an empty seat, and picked up a piece of toast, and a mug of coffee, avoiding the tea. He hated bergamot.

Will picked up a croissant. "I've only ever seen the sarcastic side of Jem once before. It really does render you speechless, doesn't it?"

Finnick smiled. "Well, he was like that in his games, if not more. You think he's going to act like that in the capitol?"

Will looked thoughtful. "I don't know. But he doesn't act or look like he used to, but you see the old him sometimes, like we did then, and it just makes you wonder if that side really did leave in the games."

Finnick frowned. "It really wasn't his fault." He said to Will.

Will snorted. "Feel free to try telling him that. I've been trying for the last three years." He scowled. "In fact, the furthest we ever got in the matter was now."

Finnick nodded. "No, I'll give it a miss. If it's enough to make you two argue, it must be a pretty hard battle."

Will snorted again. "The games are nothing compared to this."

Jace had no idea what was going on. "What wasn't his fault?" He asked.

"More like what _was_." Jems voice came again from the corridor. He raised his arm slightly, showing the tape in his hand. "They did have it."

Will grinned. "Awesome." His grin flickered. "How much of that did you hear?"

Jem looked at him curiously. "Just what Jace said. Why?"

Will frowned. "If you would have heard more, then you would have realised it wasn't your fault."

Jem gave him that could-cut-glass, chills-your-blood look again. "Not now." Was all he said, before he walked to the door. "We'll have to watch it in district twos media room. If you disturb Camille while she's sleeping, you receive a rather unpleasant surprise."

Will grinned. "Hair-dye in the shampoo? Shave off your eyebrows whilst you're sleeping?"

Jem turned to him. "She's not a child, Will. More like medicine-out-the-window type of surprise."

Wills face turned to thunder, and Finnicks face darkened. "She didn't…" Will growled.

Jem shrugged. "No, but it's what she threatened me last night. And you of all people should know she doesn't make empty threats."

Will sighed in relief, and then turned his face into a scowl. "That wasn't funny, Jem."

"What wasn't?" Finnick asked.

Jem laughed. "Let's just say that Will does NOT suit pink hair."

Finnick laughed, as Will and Jem left the room, calling goodbyes over their shoulders.

Finnick turned to him. "So, what do you want to know?"

Jace frowned. "Why those two are so close. They act as if they're brothers, and then sometimes just best friends, yet even sometimes just as one person."

Finnick looked towards the door. "It's not my place to tell you, and it's not my place to tell you what isn't Jems fault either. But Jace, do not kill either one of them in the arena."

Jaces face flickered curiosity. "Why?"

"Those two are bonded, in a way nobody can describe, and are ever-famous in the Capitol. You need the trust of the Capitol during the games, and you need sponsors and popularity. To kill Jem would mean that Will would never be the same again, and vice versa. Kill them, and every woman in the capitol would hate you." Finnick said calmly.

"But-" Jace started, but Finnick cut him off.

"Rule one of the games. Don't mess with things you don't understand." Finnick said, picking up a sugar cube and tossing it into his mouth.

"Would you be mentoring one of them if you had the chance?" Jace asked.

Finnick looked thoughtful. "To be honest, those two don't need a mentor. They're popular back in the Capitol, and besides, they have each other, and anyone with Jem on their side has an instant advantage. He's a strategist, got the brains of district three and the fighting skills of district two. He's also charismatic, and a gentleman. And likewise with Jem having Will. Best fighter anyone's ever seen, you don't want Will as an enemy. He's also smart, not like Jem, but smart. He's got a sharp tongue, and a way with words that can persuade you to do anything."

Jace frowned. "Isn't Jem from district one?" He asked, out of genuine curiosity.

Finnick nodded.

"Why did you say he had the fighting skills of two then?" Jace asked.

Finnick shrugged. "Twos renowned for its fighting skills, because they make the weapons they know how they work. Same with three and logic, and four and looks." He said with a wink at Jace.

Jaces frown deepened. "I don't want to win." He said suddenly. "I want to save Tessa."

Finnick frowned. "That makes it harder."

Jace narrowed his eyes. "Why?" He asked dangerously.

Finnick rolled his eyes. "It helps your chances when you're a guy, and when you've got looks." Finnick said simply. "Myself and Will have-" he seemed to be searching for the right words, "_Tarnished_ _reputations_ because of it."

"Then what's your advice?" Jace asked him.

Finnick frowned, as if he were thinking about it. "First bit is obvious. Stick with Tessa in the arena." Jace nodded. "Second part…." He looked thoughtful. "Get to know Jem and Will. You've got five days and the training to learn what they know, and believe me, it's a lot. It could end up saving your life."

Jace choked on his coffee. "Will? I _don't_ see that happening, ever. He _hates_ me, and I him."

"He probably doesn't hate you, but he's bitter to everyone, you have to do something terrible to make him hate-"

"I said it would be better to let Jem die than for Will to try and save him." Jace said.

Finnick put his head into his hands. "Has anyone ever called you an idiot?" Finnick said to Jace.

Jace ignored him.

"There better be a pretty good reason you said that, otherwise you're _screwed_." Finnick continued, looking up.

Jace told him about him and Wills conversation that they had had whilst on their way back to the train.

Finnick looked at him in disbelief. "You were incredibly lucky Jem was there. And it's a good thing Will listens to Jem, because Will would have killed you. I've only witnessed that happen once, when Gabriel Blackthorn called Jem weak. Will would have murdered him, but all he managed to do was break his arm."

Jace was intrigued. "Why?"

Finnick shrugged. "Jem. He simply but his hand on Wills shoulder, it seemed to instantly calm him down. He stopped swearing in Welsh, hurling things at Gabriel, stopped lashing out at anyone who tried to stop him, and just stood there. Completely quiet, and he didn't put up a struggle."

A thought crept its way into Jaces mind. "That didn't happen with me. He went to shove Jem aside-"

Finnick let out a low whistle. "And you're still alive?"

Jace rolled his eyes. "It was as he went to shove Jem aside. His skin came in contact with Jem's, and he said Jem's skin was burning, and that he needed to take something."

Finnick looked at Jace. "Jems ill health isn't a good thing, but you have no idea how fortunate you are for it. You would probably be in a coma right now, otherwise."

Jace frowned. "What if I just got Jem to trust me? He seems more trusting than Will-"

Finnick gave a short laugh. "Not a chance. Even though Will _is_ rather sour, he is more trusting than Jem. You have to be somewhat important in Jems life for him to trust you." He broke off at Jaces shocked expression. "Yes, he's kinder, and a lot easier to talk to, but he trusts no one except from Will."

Jaces frown deepened. "Why?"

Finnicks expression turned sad. "It's because Jem doesn't lie. He'll never choose to lie unless he thinks it's for your own benefit, or to flatter someone. But Jem has such dark secrets inside of him, and he doesn't want them to be somebody else's burden."

"But he trusts you-"

Finnick laughed. "He trusts me because Will does, and even then we're not close. If you want Tessa to survive these games, you have to make them trust you. And friendship is different to trust. It's easy to become someone's friend, but it takes years for them to trust you well. And you have five days."

Jace stood up. "Guess I'd better start now." He made to walk out of the door, but found the door blocked by a familiar figure walking through it. His eyes went straight to Jaces.

"The reapings started. Finnick, Jem wanted to know if you wanted to watch it?" Will said, his eyes not leaving Jace. "S'pose you should come as well." He said to Jace, before he turned and walked away.

"Oh dear." Finnick said, happily to Jace. "Looks like this is going to take a while."

Jace knew he was talking about trusting Will, but Will interpreted it differently.

"M-hm. I don't know why they have to show the final moment they won the games if you were a victor, it's pointless." They rounded a corner, and stopped short at a door. Opening it, Jace guessed they were in the district two room.

Whilst the district one room was white, bright and open, and the district four room had nets hanging from the ceilings and fish mounted on the walls, the district two room was very simple and plain. It had brick style walls, a table that just looked like a rock, and many other masonry-themed items.

"Very stone-like." Finnick said happily, sitting beside Jem on the couch.

"Gives a change from the Persian rugs, chess tables and chandeliers." Jem said with a shrug.

Jace looked to Jem, and had to admit, the grandness of a chess table didn't look like the type of thing to interest him.

Jem caught him looking and smiled. "You didn't bring a notebook?" He asked curiously.

Jace shrugged. "To be honest I didn't know I'd be coming until about one minute ago."

Jem nodded and flicked open a page. Frowning at the contents, he opened another one, and then another. This seemed to be what he was looking for. He tucked a pen inside it, and tossed it to Jace who caught it one-handed.

Finnick looked like he was trying not to laugh at Wills annoyed expression, and Jem looked back to a different notebook.

Will made a displeased noise at the back of his throat. "Jem-"

"It's information about him and Tessa, I've already memorised it all." Jem said simply, tossing Will another notebook.

"What?" Jace yelped, causing Finnick, Jem and Will to laugh.

"I got the information from the district four archives, I haven't been watching you whilst you sleep." Jem said calmly, causing everyone to laugh.

The sound of the capitol anthem made them all jump. A girl, looking extremely uncomfortable in her skirt, walked in.

"Morning. Is this the reaping?" He said, sitting next to Finnick, barely giving him a second glance.

"Maia, this is Finnick and Jace." Jem said, gesturing to them. "Jace, Finnick, this is Maia."

They all said awkward hellos, before the anthem ended, and it showed shots of the district five children standing in the crowds.

"Ladies first." Said a Capitol lady at the top of the stage, her orange wig matching her shoes, and the gems indented in her skin. There was a pause before she opened the card. "My my….Isabelle Lightwood!" She called, looking straight into the crowd.

Will let out a low whistle, and Jem paused from his writing to look up. "Again? This really isn't the Lightwoods luck is it-"

He was cut off by the TV going black, and all the lights going off in the room.

**Dun Dun Durrrn!**

**Cliff-hangers aren't really my thing. Can I say one-review before the next chapter?**


	9. The problems with powercuts

**Ok, Update schedule will be slowing down whilst I try and sort out a plan. School, hwk, extra curricular, fun, sleep...**

**Disclaimer: Not a chance. I can't kill off characters as ruthlessly as Cassie and Suzanne. Which is going to become a problem. I own the plot.**

Chapter 5- The problems with powercuts.

It was dark, save for a small amount of light coming in through a gap in the closed curtains.

Instinctively, Jem, Finnick and Will dropped to the floor, motioning for Jace and Maia to do the same.

Jems hair and eyes were luminous in the dark. He drew up the hood from his jacket, but there was nothing he could do about his eyes.

Will looked to Jem, taking a dagger from his sleeve. "Dye it for the games?" He suggested to Jem.

He smiled. "Have to ask the game makers whether or not it's allowed first."

The door began to open. "Don't kill them." Jem muttered to Will.

He grinned. "But where's the fun in that?" He threw the dagger quickly, just as the room lit up in a greenish-glow, which seemed to be coming from a stone in Jems hand.

Jem caught Jaces gaze, and shrugged. "Witchlight. From the Capitol." He ran his thumb over it, making it impossibly bright, and he and Will stood, staring at the figure frozen by the door.

The figure turned to face them, her grey eyes large with shock.

"Tessa." Jace breathed, and ran over to her. "Did it hit you?"

She shook her head. "Sorry, it's just, I heard voices, and then all the lights went out-"

"All of them?" Will interjected. "It wasn't just in here?"

Tessa shook her head, and Will pushed past her, out into the corridor.

Jem looked to Tessa. "You're alright?" He asked her.

She nodded, and smiled slightly.

Jem frowned. "Then goddamn Will, he's walked off, presumably into trouble." He walked around Jace, and went after Will.

Jace turned to Finnick, who was opening the curtains and staring outside. "Do we go with them?" He asked.

The sound of coughing came, faintly through the corridor. Finnicks expression looked panicked.

"You don't. Especially not now. Either stay put or come with me." He said, and ran out of the door, and turned into one of the rooms, the way Maia came from.

Maia, Tessa and Jace all found that curiosity got the better of them, and decided to follow Finnick.

They found themselves in an extremely messy room. Finnick swore quietly. He walked among the mess and piles of books, until he came face to face with a cabinet. He opened the doors, and looked at the small box, there was nothing else in the cabinet. Finnick tossed the note on top of it aside, and opened the box. Jace picked up the note.

_Emergencies only._

Finnick grabbed the box, and also a glass of water on Wills cluttered bedside table. He then ran out of the door.

Jace looked to Tessa, who was examining a book she had picked up off the floor. Maia plucked the note from Jaces hands.

"Tessa…" Jace said, and motioned towards the door. Tessa looked up, and put the book where she had got it.

"Right." She said, and they walked out of the door, towards the sound of yelling, feeling their way in the dark.

"Oof." Jace and another voice muttered.

"Get off me." Finnicks voice came, sounding vastly annoyed.

"What was in that box?" Jace said, followed by the sound of shuffling, he was presumably getting up off the floor.

"Nothing you need to concern yourselves with. Maia, I can't technically tell you what to do, but you two." He probably meant Jace and Tessa. "Come on."

Light flooded the room. They were in an unfamiliar corridor, wires ran along the walls in a pattern, and white stone served as a floor. They also noticed the source of the light was from a Witchlight in Wills hand, as he approached them.

"Finnick." He said, his voice lacking the sarcasm and vanity it usually held. "Thank-you. I owe you my life, if not a debt I can never fulfil. I-" He broke off, and looked at the floor. He swallowed. When he spoke again, the usual, sarcastic voice of William Herondale had returned. "Apparently, power went out because district three were experimenting with _some_ _wires_."

Jace looked around. "We're in the district three compartment?"

Will rolled his eyes. "I would have thought it'd be obvious, but it seems I was wrong."

"Where you off to?" Finnick asked.

Will shrugged. "I need the archives from district five on Isabelle. Usually Jem'd get them but…" He looked at the floor again.

Finnick nodded, and he and Will muttered goodbye. Finnick turned to Jace and Tessa. "So, what are you going to do?"

Jace smirked. _He's trying to distract us_, he thought. "Oh, we were going to watch a certain person's games, which I for one am extremely curious to watch.

Maia walked off, muttering a plan about how to attack Camille in her sleep. "Oh really? Whose games?" Finnick asked.

Tessa shot a look at Jace. _Don't say it, don't say it_-

"Jems." Jace said, his smirk still in place.

_He_ _said_ _it_. Tessa thought, dismayed. But that wasn't the end of it.

"Gonna watch it with us? You could point out things we might miss. Hair colour, and the likes." Jace said, thinking about Wills games, and how Jems hair had streaks of black in it.

Finnicks usually good-natured face had darkened when Jace had mentioned whose games, but had turned to thunder at his last words. "I wouldn't watch them, if I were you."

"Oh, it's alright, it's just the highlights." Jace said happily, before turning and walking off, dragging Tessa with him.

Finnick sighed. "That's even worse." He muttered, his thoughts on before, Wills, helpless, distraught face, when Finnick had eventually found him with Jems drug, and the way Will had looked at the box with hatred. How Jem was about to refuse it, before he saw the look on Wills face and decided to take it. How that unspoken thought had all crossed their minds while Jem was drinking it.

_Jem isn't going to survive these games_.

Finnick supressed a shudder, and went to the entrance of the train, wondering who the male for district five was.

**Ok, the length of the next chapter is 8000 words long, and counting, since I still haven't finished it. 8000.**


	10. Another piece in the puzzle- Jems games

Another piece in the puzzle.

**I got a request that inspired me to type Jems games. I wasn't going to, but then I thought it might be a good idea.**

**Also, I put the previous chapter as chapter 5 on its title. Sorry about that.**

**P.S: Count five seconds. It's an uncomfortably long time to stare at someone, with them staring back, don't you think? Just saying, because it comes up in this chapter.**

**P.S****2nd****: **_Italics mean that it's the games footage_.

**Disclaimer: I'm so lazy I can't even be bothered to do a sass-filled disclaimer. I just can't. I own the plot, nothing else. Also, I've been forgetting disclaimers. Oops.**

**Please note that Tessa and Jace aren't in love, they're just basically like brother and sister! (Which I suppose is bad, 'cause we all know that Jace doesn't care about incest) Anyway! No Tessa+Jace!**

"Wait." Jace said, as Tessa went to put the tape into the player. "We should watch this first." He looked to the tape in his hands.

Tessas eyes narrowed. "Wills games?"

Jace shrugged. "Learnt nothing really, his fighting style varied depending on who he fought, he seemed to just blend into their style. All I learned is that he's smart, and can fight well. But there's a certain part I wanted you to watch."

Tessa shrugged, and Jace put in the tape, fast-forwarding to the very end. Seeming to find the right scene he pressed play.

"The very end?" Tessa asked puzzled.

Jace rolled his eyes. "Yes. Shut up, you'll see why in a second."

Tessa huffed quietly, but did as he asked.

_The boy had a golden crown placed on his head by President Snow. The camera panned to the cheering crowds, and then to the district two mentor, and then it flicked to all the mentors, standing in a line._

Tessa gasped at one of them. It looked so like Jem, but it couldn't be, could it? It had thick streaks of black in it.

"Is that…?" Tessa asked, but shut up, now intrigued.

_"And there are all the mentors from the games this year, and now we see Jem Carstairs, victor of last year's games coming up to congratulate William Herondale!" _The commentator said excitedly.

_Jem walked up the steps, towards Will._

Tessa couldn't help but notice the differences. He was slightly shorter. Still thin, but not as thin as he was now. Still pale, but not as pale as Tessa knew him to be. He looked stronger too. Yet certain features were the same. He still moved with the quiet grace Tessa knew him to move like, he still had the look of worry and sacrifice in his eyes, no matter how bright his smile. His eyes. They were also different. They were almost black, with bronze flecks in them, but in certain places there were rings of silver.

"His eyes…" Tessa muttered, looking to Jace, whose frown deepened.

_He stretched out his hand to Will, who took it with a grin. _

She noticed Will ask Jem something.

_Jem shook his head slightly, and Wills grin slipped. He pulled it up rather quickly._

Tessa had still seen it though.

She and Jace watched in silence as the mentors congratulated Will, followed lastly by the district two mentor.

Jace turned it off. "See what I meant? If that doesn't make you want to watch his games, I don't know what will."

Tessa frowned slightly. It _did_ make her want to watch Jems games. "Whose eyes change colour? I mean, you can dye hair but…"

Jace shrugged, and then looked around. "I left my notebook in the district two compartment, I'll be back in a sec."

Tessa nodded as Jace sauntered out the door.

* * *

"No, it was there when we walked past it, but on the way back…" Jem trailed off.

Jace grinned. They hadn't heard him.

"They wouldn't have picked it up." Will said confidently.

"No, I think they did. You would have, if you'd come across it on the track. And Finnick said they were going to watch someone's games, he didn't say who but…" Jem said again.

"They'd have found out eventually." Was all Will said after the long silence. Jace was nearly at the door.

"That's not what I was thinking about. It isn't really a nice thing to watch-" Jem pointed out.

"The games never are."

"Yet mine more so than others."

Will swore loudly. "My games, at the end, you shook my hand, along with all the other mentors. And your hair, your eyes, it would have made them more curious-" there was a silence before he spoke again. "You knew he was outside, didn't you?" He asked Jem.

_Crap_. Jace thought. _I've been found. _He looked around, yet there was no small corridor to hide in.

"I knew someone was in the corridor, I presumed it was Finnick or Maia." Jem admitted.

Jace knocked on the door. He heard Will laugh, before the door opened.

"You knocked. Why?" Will asked, amused.

Jace shrugged. "You got annoyed last time I didn't." He pointed out.

Will frowned. "True..."

"I don't know whether or not I can still have it, but Jem lent me a notebook. I came to get it." Jace said.

"Right." Will said, before looking around the room. "Thing is, I have no idea where it is…"

Jem laughed, and stood up, walking over to a small table. He picked up a notebook, and passed it to Will, who gave it to Jace.

"It was Isabelle and Alexander Lightwood who got chosen, by the way." Jem added, as an afterthought.

Jace was shocked. "Wait, when did we set off?"

Will grinned. "About two hours ago."

Jace frowned slightly. "Wait? Alexander Lightwood? Is he Isabelle's brother or something?"

Jem nodded. "Maryse and Robert weren't all that happy, since their youngest son Max was chosen three years ago. Now they have to deal with the fact that one, if not both, of their children will not return."

"Three years ago, wasn't that your year?" Jace said, his frown deepening.

Wills jaw tightened. "I don't necessarily want to talk about it."

Jem shot Will a look of sympathy. Jace, however, thought back to a scene in Wills highlights.

_Will turned around, seeing two people cornering a small boy, far from the cornucopia. He noticed the small boy screaming as the woman drew a silver sword through his throat, very slowly, as the other stabbed him in the collarbone. Wills jaw tightened, as he drew a dagger from his belt and threw it. _Jace recognised the point it hit_. It had been thrown so it speared her spine and her heart. She dropped to the floor instantly, her partner turning around wildly, only to be shot in the brain by an arrow, although it wasn't Will who had shot it, it was someone else. Will turned around, away from the now helpless, dead boy, and emerged himself in the fight again_.

"Max Lightwood. Was he the one who was cornered by two others?" Jace asked. Will said nothing, but by the set of his jaw Jace guessed he was right.

"Will-" Jem started.

Will gave a hollow laugh. "Don't even bother comforting me about my games, considering what happened in yours."

Jems look of sympathy vanished. "What happened to him wasn't your fault, whilst mine-"

Will snorted. "If your argument is that you shouldn't have drunk it, then mine should be that I should have been watching his back, paired up with him-"

"And then be the one to have to kill him in the end?" Jem asked softly.

"I could have left him after the bloodbath, maybe he would have died due to game maker intervention, it's better than death by careers."

"Is it?" Jem said, his expression still calm. "Whilst his death wasn't exactly quick, isn't that better than mine? Not knowing, just accepting that it could be tomorrow, the day after, maybe the day after that." Jem said.

"Everyone dies." Jace intervened.

Jem looked to him. "Yes, but myself sooner than other people. If I'm lucky, I won't even have to go into the arena-"

"Don't talk like that." Will said sharply.

"Like what?" Jem asked him.

"Like you're not even going to make it to the Capitol."

"I've had an attack every day since the reaping, Will. I've had to have more than I would to train with you just to be able to stay on my feet."

Will looked furious. He turned on his heel and went into the room Finnick had charged into before.

Jem put his head into his hands. "We never used to argue about it. Now it's all we talk about. The games change people, Jace. Kind-hearted people become cold-blooded murderers. Things that are only in the darkest of dreams become a most terrifying reality. You find you would do anything, kill anyone, to live. The games change you in a way no one can understand, look at myself, for example."

Jace looked at him. _Was he any different to how he was before he entered the games?_

"I can't make you not watch it, but I'm telling you, you'll wish you didn't. There's a reason nobody talks about my games, Jace." Jem told him, his odd, silver eyes turning to face him.

Jace held his gaze for about five seconds, before he turned and did the unexpected. He went into Wills room.

Will spoke something very fast, in a language Jace didn't know.

"What?" Jace asked.

Will looked up. "Thought you were Jem."

"What language was that?"

"A mix of Mandarin and Welsh."

Jace frowned. "You know, French is a simple language, you could just-"

Will shrugged. "My mother knew Welsh, and she taught me. Jem knew Mandarin, so he taught me some phrases, and I taught him some Welsh. It's quite useful, no one ever knows what you are talking about." He looked at Jace, curiously. "Why are you in here?"

Jace shrugged. "I'm just curious as to what that conversation was about."

Wills eyes narrowed. "You don't need to know that."

"Oh, but I think I do. Any information is helpful, we are in the games, after all."

Wills eyes became slits. "Here's a useful fact. Jem can judge a character in under 20 seconds, did you know that?"

Jace looked puzzled. He _didn't_ know that.

"And," Will continued, "He's never been wrong, not once. He saw straight through Finnicks arrogance, it's why he acts differently with us, he knows his act is pointless. He saw through Camille's flirting, he knew she was cold blooded, and not to be trusted. He dismissed Gabriel's politeness, knowing him to be vain and a prat."

"Why are you-?" Jace began, but was cut off.

"President Snow sees this as a weapon, maybe the key to an uprising. But it's useful. It tells you who a person really is. At the end of my games, everyone notices my face and Jem shaking his head, no matter how hard we tried to hide it. There's many theories on it. But the actual reason is because he saw straight through my act. "

Jace frowned. "I still don't get-"

Will grinned. "You wouldn't. But as soon as Jem starts talking to a person, I start counting. He's usually guessed by fifteen seconds, sure by twenty. And the opinion doesn't change. When you were eavesdropping on us, when you first got on the train, I was waiting for Jem to give me a signal. He usually does, to tell me he knows their character. But with you and Tessa….He didn't signal. I asked him about it once we were out of the compartment, and he said he got Tessas. Determination, truthfulness, kindness, etc. But he didn't get you. You've built up a wall around yourself, Jace, one that only one person can bring down."

"To love is to destroy. To be loved is to be the one destroyed." Jace quoted automatically.

Will raised an eyebrow.

Jace frowned, before he turned and left, noticing Jem wasn't still on the couch.

* * *

"What were you doing?" Tessa demanded, as soon as he walked in. "Did you kill someone?"

"Hopefully not, otherwise Finnicks plan would be ruined." Jace told her.

"What plan?" She asked, her eyes narrowed.

"Oh, right, I didn't tell you. Finnick says that we'll have a good chance if we befriend Jem and Will. Apparently, even if we learn just a bit of what they know then we're a lot better off than we are now."

Tessa looked puzzled. "Why couldn't Finnick just teach us?"

Jace shrugged. "Cause Finnick isn't coming into the arena with us."

"Yeah, but he could still teach us basic survival, and stuff."

Jace looked at her. "Finnick hasn't planned like Jem and Will have. And besides, Finnick said that Jems a strategist, with the brains of district three and the fighting skills of district two. He said that Wills the best fighter anyone's ever seen, and that he's smart. We could do with them as allies, don't you think?"

Tessa looked sad. "I don't want allies in the arena, it's hard enough-"

"I know. But we could do to learn what they know, couldn't we?" Jace said.

Tessa shrugged. He did have a point. "But Will doesn't seem to like us." She pointed out.

Jace sighed. "He doesn't like you. He _hates_ me. But we have to get him to trust us, and besides, it's easier to gain his trust than Jems."

Tessa looked shocked. "Jem?"

"Finnick said that although he's kind, he doesn't trust people because he knows things that he doesn't want people to know, and that he doesn't like to lie."

"Yet Will-"

"Seems to lie every moment of the day, and something tells me that isn't his true self. The only time he seems to be on earth is when something concerns Jem."

"So we have to trust a liar to find out the truth." Tessa said thoughtfully.

Jace nodded. "Yep. And it'll help by watching Jems games."

Tessa nodded as Jace put in the tape, picking up her glass of water.

"Ready?" Jace asked. When Tessa nodded, he pressed play.

_"These hunger games are following the victory of Jem Carstairs, aged fourteen years, in the highlights of his games!" Said an exceptionally cheerful presenter. "It is recommended that Children below thirteen do not watch these games, scenes are more violent than usual, and may contain disturbing images." She said, her face turning grave for a moment before flicking into her grin. "Let the reaping begin!"_

Jace paused the tape. "An age warning?" He said with a frown. "That wasn't included in Camille's games, or Will's, and that showed some pretty frightful stuff. Camille ripped out someone's throat using her teeth!"

"More violent than usual?" Tessa echoed.

Jaces frown deepened. "Let's keep watching."

They didn't notice the door opening, as a figure with tangled black hair and deep blue eyes walked in. If they'd have turned around, maybe they could have seen the fury on his face when he saw the TV, or the way he was holding his right wrist tightly, or the mutinous look he gave Jace and Tessa.

If their idea had been to get William Herondale to trust them, watching these games hadn't been a good move.

_The screen showed the clean, white, main square, where a bright stage had been set up. A woman walked onto the stage as the capitol anthem started, and the short film began. When it ended, the woman took her place standing on the stage._

_"Welcome! Welcome to the reaping of the 71__st__ annual Hunger Games! NOW! Now is the time that we have to choose two strong, independent people who will _honour_ district one by becoming their tributes!"_

_She walked over to the glass bowls. "As always…Ladies first." Her hand rooted inside a bowl, until she seemed satisfied with a certain slip. She cleared her throat. "Anneau-"_

_"I VOLUNTEER!" A voice yelled from the crowds._

Jace snorted. "Anneau, isn't that French for ring?"

Tessa didn't know French. "I….I think so…but its district one isn't it?"

Jace shrugged. "S'pose." He pressed play again.

_The escort looked shocked. "Well well… a volunteer already! Come right up, dear!"_

_A traditionally beautiful girl sashayed up to the stage. Her hair was long, and a pale blond, and she had green eyes that stood out shockingly against her pale skin. She looked exactly like all district one people did._

_"My names Alexandrite." She said, before the escort could ask._

_"Well then, just stand over there dear." The escort said, moving over to the other bowl. "And now…the boys!" She said, her talon-like nails struggling to pick up the pieces of paper._

_"And…Cuir Tem-"_

Jace snorted again. "Cuir. That's French for Leather."

_"I Volunteer!" Came a voice from the crowd._

Tessa looked shocked. "Jem volunteered?"

Jace paused the tape with a frown. "What were you expecting? That he was reaped and no one volunteered?"

That made Tessa frown. "I don't know, but he doesn't seem like the type, you know?"

"Tessa, he was a _victor_. He must have killed-"

"Yes, I get the idea, Jace." Tessa snapped.

Jace suddenly started laughing.

"What?" Tessa asked.

"Anneau and Cuir." Jace said in-between laughter. "Not two names that sound good together." He suddenly started laughing harder. "It would mean Ring and Leather! Oh dear!"

Tessa started laughing as well. She had to admit, Alexandrite and Jem seemed a much better fit.

Jace started laughing even harder, Tessa thought he might crack a rib. "Tessa…" He managed to stop laughing. "Alexandrite is a type of gem. And Jems name…" He tried to subdue his laughter.

Tessa smiled slightly, knowing what Jace was getting at. "Let's just watch it." She said, taking the remote from Jace.

_A tall boy walked forwards calmly. "I volunteer as tribute." He said it so matter-of-factly, yet it seemed to surprise people more than Alexandrite's outburst did._

_As he walked onto the stage, the commentator's voice could be heard again. "I just love this moment! How he says it so calmly, so simply, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world! And how you can see the shock on everyone's faces, as if surprised he would volunteer!"_

Tessa chocked on the water she was drinking as Jem walked onto the stage. She paused the tape again.

"That…can't be right…can it? He's got dark hair, and darker skin…" Tessa said slowly.

Jace looked thoughtful. "Maybe the Capitol altered him, like they sometimes do?"

Tessa frowned slightly. "Maybe…" She said, but they both doubted it.

Jace sat up suddenly. "Jems chess piece. His hair was dark, wasn't it?"

Tessas frown disappeared, and was replaced by a thoughtful look. "What do you think that means?"

"Perhaps we'll find out." He said with a shrug.

Tessa pressed play.

_"What's your name?" The escort asked, though she seemed a little breathless as she looked at Jem_.

He turned around, and Tessa saw why. He wasn't hot, like Will, or Jace. But he was _striking_. His ebony coloured hair was falling slightly into his bronze-black eyes, which seemed to set off his tanned skin perfectly. He was also of the right build. Toned, but not overly-muscular. Thin, but in a healthy way. Tall, in an enchanting way. _He was, _Tessa thought, incredibly handsome.

"Tessa? You're blushing." Jace said, with an extremely arrogant smirk.

Tessa hit him. "Shut up. I bet every woman or gay man was as well when they saw his face."

Jaces smirk broadened.

_"Jem Carstairs. And it is a pleasure to meet your acquaintance." He said, and kissed her hand._

_The woman fainted, and Jem caught her easily._

_The scene faded and became black, and the colourful presenter came back, fanning herself, desperately trying to de-pink her face._

Jace snorted.

Tessa hit him again, causing him to laugh harder.

"Funny, the escort for Will had the exact same reaction when he volunteered. And all he did was wink at her. Do you think I should have done the same?" He said, winking to Tessa.

She rolled her eyes. "Shut it." She warned.

Jace started laughing again, so Tessa ignored him and pressed play.

_"I just _love_ that! He could have just let her fall, but he rushed over and caught her! Oh, I bet every woman wishes she was in that escorts shoes then! And their names! Jem and Alexandrite! It fits so perfectly, it's as if it was planned! It's so perfect, and simple and beautiful!"_

_The bright background faded to the tribute parade, showing flashes of all the outfits. The commentator points out how the district one outfits (Some ridiculous, feathery attire) have pieces of Alexandrite gems woven into them, and how it just links back to how perfect the names are._

Jace rolled his eyes. "We get it, their names are perfect. Can you just drop it?"

They didn't drop it. In fact, they went on about it for another five minutes, barely talking about the other outfits.

The next scene was the interviews, in which Jem was the Jem Tessa knew him to be; Charismatic and good-natured, and unbelievably kind_._ Tessa seemed to think Jem and Ceaser (and yes, it was still Ceaser) seemed to act as old friends, laughing and joking around. It reminded Tessa of Peeta's and Ceaser's interview last year. The only thing that was missing was the secret love of Jems life.

_"So, Jem." Ceaser started seriously._

_"I'm not about to be interrogated, am I Ceaser?" Jem asked, mock-seriously, much to the crowds' amusement, as they all laughed again._

_Ceaser laughed too. "I do hope not, we'll save the injuries until the games, shall we?"_

_Jem smiled. "Only if they're not mine."_

_The crowd laughed again._

_"I was going to ask you, Jem, if you have a secret someone back in district one?"_

_Jems smile broadened. "In district one? No one really comes to mind. But in the Capitol… I think every woman I've met just about sums it up."_

_Three women in the audience fainted._

Tessa frowned. This was a different Jem she'd seen so far. True, he was still good-natured and a gentleman, but he was he was sarcastic and flirtatious, and…rather like Jace.

_The buzzer sounded. "Well then, I'm sorry to say that's your time up!" Ceaser said, among the disappointed sounds of the audience._

_Jem grinned. "Not to worry Ceaser, I'll see you when I get out."_

_Everyone laughed, including Ceaser. "I do hope so." He said, and he and Jem shook hands before Jem stood up gracefully and left._

_Once again, the scene went black. The woman came into sight, many shades brighter in her cheeks than she was before. _

_"And that was there interview! The best one of the night by far, it really goes into depth and was just hilarious!"_

_Then, the background changed to the training scores. Jem ranked the highest, by scoring a ten._

_"It was, of course, not unexpected, I mean, throughout all the interviews, and the parades, he's really proved to be quite something hasn't he?" The commentator went on to say._

Jace frowned. "She is really bad at this whole commentating thing, isn't she?"

Tessa laughed, but as the scene came the games, she paused, as did the screen.

An age appropriate warning came up.

Jace rolled his eyes, yet picked up the pen and notebook he had cast aside during the chariot race.

_The countdown came onto screen. The camera panned the arena, a barren, desert-like place. In the distance, you could see a shimmering, tropical lake, and to the left there was a dense forest. The cornucopia stood to the right, but between that and the tributes there was a gap in the grounds, a canyon. And by the looks of it, it seemed quite wide._

_As it ticked down to zero, they were off. Two people ran straight for the forest, six for the lake and the rest to the cornucopia. Jem, however, wasn't running. If anything, he was walking calmly towards the canyon, yet further down from where everyone else had congregated. _

_At the sound of a scream and a yell, Jem turned around. It seemed that someone had started pushing others in. A fight broke out, though with punches and kicks rather than arrows and knives. The sound of the cannon went off for the two that had fallen. Another tried to take a run and jump, yet missed by several feet, and fell to his death. The cannon went off again, symbolising he was dead. Another cannon noise, perhaps one had died in the fight._

_The camera went to Jem, who appeared to be walking quite far down, yet the opposite way to the lake. He stopped walking suddenly, his attention on something in the sky that had caught his eye. The camera followed his gaze only to see nothing. Jem, however, had defiantly seen something. He bent down and picked up some sand from the ground, and threw it straight in front of him, where it stuck for about a second in mid-air, before falling at his feet, now a small clump and blackened._

_Jem grinned._

"Force-field." Jace muttered, to no-one in particular.

Tessa rolled her eyes. "Thank-you, captain obvious."

_He seemed to be looking across the canyon now. He knelt down in the ground and began drawing massively complicated shapes and numbers in the ground, looking up every now and then to either check something or to see if there was anyone coming towards him._

_The screen showed a pretty decent shot of what he was drawing._

"God. I can see now why everyone says he's smart." Tessa said, staring at the small symbols and numbers on the screen that made no sense to her.

_Jem then picked up a large rock that, coincidently, lay right next to him. He seemed to weigh it in his hands, before throwing it, hard, at a dead tree that lay across the canyon, right on the edge. It hit the wood with a thunk, before falling. It hadn't made a mark on the wood. Jem frowned at that._

"What's he even trying to do?" Tessa asked.

Jace snorted. "As if I know."

_Jem then erased all his markings in the sand, using his foot, before he looked at the canyon in front of him._

_The camera switched to the fight. Blood was spilled, onto the cracked, dry floor, and skin was becoming purple and black, bloodied and bruised._

_"Alexandrite!" A familiar voice called, causing the blond tribute to look up, as did the man she was fighting. She kicked him swiftly, in the place it hurts the most, before looking in disbelief to the boy standing in front of her._

_Across the canyon from her._

_"Do you…you know, want to borrow a weapon?" Jem called, a cocky grin on his face._

Tessa and Jace both laughed at that. Jem had a thick leather strap around his waist, which currently had about seven knifes tucked into it. He also had a backpack/rucksack slung onto his back, which was presumably filled with supplies. He had a misericord in his hand, and was currently twirling it in his hands.

_Alexandrite looked at him with loathing. "Really, Jian? You're being sarcastic about this, _now_?"_

"Jian?" Tessa said to Jace, currently confused.

Jace looked as confused as Tessa felt. He shrugged, and motioned for her to play the tape.

_Jems smile broadened. "Just being the gentleman I supposedly am." He said, with a wink._

_Alexandrite rolled her eyes at that. Everyone had stopped fighting now, and was looking at the boy across the canyon._

_"You know what would be perfect?" She called._

_Jem shrugged._

_"Telling me how to get across."_

_Jem looked shocked. "But I couldn't do that! This is my base, and besides, I'm enjoying watching you…ah…_figure it out_." He said, looking at each of the tributes in turn._

_Alexandrite blushed, and looked furious. "Now _really_ isn't the time!"_

_"Then when is? I can wait an hour…possibly two…maybe even three if I've nothing better to do."_

_"If you don't tell me I swear on the angel I'll kill you." Alexandrite growled._

_Jem paused, and then looked around him. "How?" he asked, not unreasonably._

_Alexandrite looked murderous._

Tessa and Jace were both laughing by now. A lot. "That's never something I've seen in the games before." Jace said, in between the laughter.

Tessa frowned slightly. "Whys he acting like that? It's a life-death situation-"

Jace looked at her. "Is it? Something tells me Jem has the upper hand here."

Tessas frown stayed put. "But he doesn't seem like that now-"

Jace thought back to what Jem had told him before. _The games change you in a way no one can understand, look at myself, for example. _Had something so bad happened to Jem that he lost everything? But he hadn't turned to drink or drug like many other victors. But…Jace thought back to another conversation Will and Jem had had. "_I know Haymitch, I met him on my victory tour. We had a lot in common." _

Oh. Oh dear. "Tessa, maybe we shouldn't-"

Her grey eyes faced him. "That, Jace Wayland, is exactly what I've been telling you from the start." She resumed the tape.

_"Why are you so vexing? You aren't exactly being that helpful-" Alexandrite started._

_Jem raised his eyebrow. "I just offered you a weapon."_

_She seemed to be trying to find the right words. "Yes, but, it's not really, your so, URG! Jem!" She paused. "Are you not going to help? Together we could probably slay them all-"_

_Everyone tensed, ready for action. Jem remained calm. "And risk my life? Tell you what, give me a reason I should tell you how to cross, and I will."_

_Alexandrite looked like she wanted to slap him. Which she probably did._

_"When I find out how to cross…I will kill you, Carstairs." She snarled._

_Jems expression didn't change. "Not the best way to convince me, but this has become boring. I made a bridge." He turned back to the cornucopia, and seemed to be checking if there were any more things he could get._

_Alexandrite seemed to be trying to figure it out, but another tribute seemed to understand. His head whipped up and down, and seeing the old tree, which now seemed to be lying flat across the canyon, he sprinted for it._

_No one else moved. The tribute ran across the trunk, and slipped twice. Jem walked towards him. Alexandrite snorted. "Did he not guess Jem would corner him?" She said loudly._

_"Axe." Jem said cheerfully, greeting the man, who had stopped half way across the trunk._

_The man's eyes narrowed. He was tall, but nowhere near Jems height, even though Axe seemed to be older. Yet Axe seemed to be stronger._

_Jem was now holding two long swords in his hands._

_"Your plan was to kill me?" Axe snarled._

_Jem smiled._

_"I trusted you-"_

_Jems smile broadened. "Really? I'm touched. But I must say, the feelings were not returned. My trust isn't something I give away to anyone. Especially someone who-" He ran his eyes down Axe and then back up. "Wouldn't hesitate to kill me."_

_Axes eyes narrowed._

_Jem looked at the longswords in his hands. He tossed one to Axe, who had to dive to catch it, nearly losing his balance._

_Axe looked at the sword like he couldn't believe Jem had thrown it him._

_Jem smiled. "You never trusted me. If you did, you'd know me well. If you knew me well, you'd know that I would never participate in an unfair fight." He paused. "You can go. Or you can fight me, and fairly at that." He grinned. "Although, I don't see your chances at winning this fight."_

_Axe looked murderous again. "I'm the best fighter in my district."_

_Jem shrugged. "Hardly proves anything."_

_Axe took a step forwards, towards Jem, and behind him, a line of fire appeared. The game makers had sent a message, and an obvious one at that._

_No turning back now._

_Jem dropped his bag to the floor. He held the longsword in his right hand, and raised his left. He brought the first two fingers forwards. The meaning was clear._

_Come at me._

_Axe snarled, and began to run forwards, and Jem took a step back. There was a clanging of metal-on-metal._

Tessa stiffened. "Jace, I don't really want to-"

Jace looked at her. "We have to watch, and learn, his fighting style. We could be in the same situation in a weeks' time."

_Axe thrust his sword forwards, yet Jem intercepted it easily. Axe tried again, yet Jem blocked it. This time, Axe brought his sword round in a complicated manner, yet Jem pressed his blade to Axes, and knocked it back._

Tessa exhaled sharply. "He's good."

The blue eyed boy standing by the doorway smiled. If they thought Jem was good with a sword, they hadn't seen him with a knife.

_They continued like this, Axe attacking and Jem defending for at least a minute._

"You know, this fight could be over a lot faster if Jem went to kill. But he's only doing defence moves, and there's plenty of times he could jab-" He trailed off thoughtfully.

_Jem started walking forwards, forcing Axe back. They stepped onto the trunk, and they were now above the canyon. _

Tessa noticed something. Axe was clearly trying as hard as he could, yet Jem was moving with his usual grace, as if it were a rather effortless dance. Jem seemed to fighting almost…lazily.

_Jem brought his sword down quickly, and jabbed it into Axes knee. By the amount of red there was, it was a pretty deep wound. Axe stumbled, and tripped backwards. He tried to get back up, only to see a silver object at his throat._

_"I suppose it still wasn't a fair fight. You're from district seven-"_

"Explains the name." Jace muttered.

_"Meaning Axes are your strength, not swords. However, you used them pretty well during training." Jem said thoughtfully._

_Axe grinned. "So, you're going to kill me, after all? How does it feel, Jem? You're first victim was your friend."_

_Something flickered in Jems gaze at the word victim. "A friend who wouldn't have hesitated to kill me."_

_Axe's grin only got bigger. "Only one victor, Jem. You can't have friends."_

_"Yet you can trust someone?" Jem asked._

_Axe's grin disappeared._

_Jem stared down at him, his bronze-black eyes cold. "I am aware why you tried to trust me. I'm a good fighter, and a fighter with useful information. Am I not the obvious choice for an alliance? You don't try to get my trust, and you can't earn it. I can judge someone in exactly twenty seconds, and I found you to be a traitor."_

Jace wrote down every word Jem had just said. "See Tessa? We learned something."

Tessa ignored him.

_"My first 'victim' will not be a friend, it will be a traitor. Give me a reason you should live, and I'll get you out alive."_

"Couldn't have been that good of a reason." Jace pointed out.

_"I have a family-" Axe started._

_"And who doesn't? Everyone has someone they left behind." Jem asked, though his eyes were now blazing._

_"You don't. We know why you volunteered, Jem. We all know you just want to join them."_

_Jem increased the pressure on his blade. A small amount of blood began to trickle down Axes throat._

_"You tell them that. You'll see them _long_ before I do." He said. His voice was level, yet his eyes were burning. "You know, the only other tribute apart from myself who knew about my parents was Alexandrite. And she said she wouldn't tell anyone."_

_Axe grinned slightly. "I gave her my word I wouldn't tell anyone."_

_Jems eyes looked at Axe mercilessly. "You just broke it."_

_Axe moved his head quickly. The sword cut his neck, but it didn't seem deep._

_"Rule of fighting, Jem. Never remove your pressure on the blade. It gives people a chance to escape."_

_Jem dropped his sword. "Then by all means, show me how it's done."_

_Axe went to stand up. What a mistake that was. He buckled under the pressure on his injured leg, and fell, swiftly, down into the fathomless canyon._

_"It appears no one ever taught him all of the rules. An opponent never gives up their weapon unless doing so brings an advantage." Jem said, looking down without pity, as the cannon sounded._

_He picked up his bag and walked away. Deep into the forest, and not looking back._

_The remaining tributes wasted no time in getting to the cornucopia._

"He didn't kill him." Tessa said thoughtfully.

Jace looked at her, his expression also thoughtful. "I wonder. The Jem we know is calm and thoughtful, kind and respectful. The Jem in the games is funny and smart, sarcastic and oh-so-slightly arrogant. It just makes you think, which one is the real Jem? Was this-" He pointed to the screen, "An act for the cameras? Or is the Jem we know simply holding it all in?"

Tessas expression turned sad. "What about Annie? And Katniss? The games traumatise you, crush your spirits-"

"But his spirit isn't crushed. It's just different to how it used to be."

Tessa resumed the game, as darkness had fallen. Since it was just the highlights, it appeared that the events from mid-day to evening hadn't been eventful.

_Jem was in a tree. And it was a very tall one, at that. He moved his head quickly, eyes glinting in the darkness. He had seen, or heard, something. But whatever it was, he didn't seem to like it. He stuffed a thick sleeping bag into his backpack, drawing out a rope and a throwing-knife. Jem looked at it in distaste, it was shining rather brightly. He also retrieved a small piece of black cloth from his bag, and he tore of a small strip, putting the rest back carefully._

_He wound the cloth around the blade tightly, leaving only the tip free._

Jace wrote it down in his notebook. "Good idea, that."

_He raised the hilt, but upon hearing the voices, lowered it. He took the rope from his bag again, and took the bag off his back. He tied the rope around the bag, securing it to the branch._

"Whys he leaving his bag?" Tessa asked, as Jem rose from his crouch until he was standing.

_He walked carefully yet swiftly among the thick branch he was standing on, pausing as the branch became very thin. He raised his head, to see if there was a longer branch below him. There was. He reached up, and pulled himself up unto that branch and then walked further. He looked around him, presumably to see a stronger tree. A sudden light, however, made him drop down into a crouch._

_"You sure he went this way?" A gruff voice asked._

_"Soon as the games started, him and that 12 year old from his district." Another voice answered. A female._

_The first voice snorted. "Two twelve year olds from district twelve. How fitting." _

_Jem rose from his crouch, and ran across the branch quickly. He looked at the nearest tree. Frowning slightly, he leapt across easily, landing on a thin branch._

_The camera flitted to a group of people standing on the forest floor. One was holding a torch._

_"Well, we'll get the two from twelve tonight, then set up camp." A girl's voice said._

_ "What about Carstairs?" A male asked. "From how he fought with Axe, it made Axe look like he'd never held a longsword before, and that was Axes favourite weapon."_

_"I never saw him pick up a weapon during training at the Capitol. He was always at knot tying, or edible plants, the little survival stuff. " Another voice added, also a females._

_Alexandrite snorted. "He scored a ten in training, highest out of all of us. I trained with him once back at home, during knife throwing." She laughed. "Mistake I never thought I'd make. You guys thought he was good with a longsword? That's his least favourite weapon."_

_"Is that why you told us to get all the knives at cornucopia?" A male asked._

_"Exactly. He could hit a target blindfolded, backwards, and from about 50 feet."_

"Show off." Jace muttered.

_"So kind you have that recollection of me, I would have thought you'd have forgotten it. Shame you took all the knives, for I know every single one of you is incompetent with throwing them." Jems voice came from the trees._

_The career pack whipped around._

_"Do we look to be in a gaming mood, Jem?" Alexandrite called._

_"Well, I don't know. I can't see your face." Jem pointed out. Shine the torch on it, then I'll tell you._

_"Where are you?" Another called._

_Jem laughed, and they turned around to face the direction they'd heard him in. He was running through those trees, and fast._

"Must be a good climber, to get that far that fast." Tessa mused.

Jace nodded and wrote it down.

_"This is not hide-and-seek, Jem!" Alexandrite called, sounding frustrated._

_"By the sounds of it, I'm guessing you're not in a gaming mood." Jem mused._

_"I will climb every tree in this forest until I find you, Carstairs. Then I will hunt you down, and kill you. Slowly and painfully. I'd love to hear you scream."_

_"Oh, I was wrong. You _are_ in a gaming mood. Would you _like_ to play a game?" Jem asked, as they turned to a different direction. "How about the Alexandrite-will-climb-every-tree-in-this-forest-a nd-then-discover-that-I-am-nowehere-to-be-found-ga me?"_

_She made a frustrated noise._

_"No? Oh, ok. What about hide and seek?" Jem asked again, his voice sparking with humour._

_"What. The. Hell." A male said, shining the torch through the infinite number of trees._

_There was the lightest of thuds, and a figure appeared, right in the torches beam of light._

_"I only have two daggers." Jem said calmly. "I have a feeling this will be over quickly."_

_The male grinned. "Say your prayers." He had a mace in his hand, and was whirling it._

_Jem unravelled the black cloth surrounding the dagger._

_Alexandrite hit the man on his arm. "Idiot. He can kill all five of us in the blink of an eye with those two daggers, are you really going against him?" She hissed._

_"What about you? You've sworn you'll kill him twice now." The only other female asked Alexandrite._

_"What am I, an idiot? My plan was to kill district twelve tonight, not Jem."_

_Jem smiled. "Nice to know you were going to at least give me another night to live, Alexandrite. But if you're all debating as to who will go against me, hurry it up. I plan on having at least an hour of sleep whilst it's still dark."_

_The male with the mace ran forwards quickly, whirling the mace in front of him. Jems eyes flicked to him lazily, before he stepped to the side and the man ran past him._

_"A mace? That's your weapon?" Jem asked, eyebrows quirking in amusement. "Brave of you, never would have thought that weapon is of much use against a throwing knife."_

_Jem simply began climbing the tree. He sat on the lowest branch, and looked down at the man below him._

_"You won't be able to climb this tree with a mace in your hands." Jem pointed out._

_"Just watch me." The man snarled._

_"I am." Jem pointed out again._

_The man whirled the mace, but then threw it. It wasn't expected, and Jem dodged, but not well enough. It cut him on his shoulder, before it lodged itself in the branch above._

_Jem shrugged. "You've lost your weapon."_

_"Then you're not the only one who's lost something are you? Granted, I still __**have**__ a family, but-"_

_He didn't get to finish that. Alexandrite had loaded her bow, and had aimed, and shot, an arrow at the males neck. He turned around, and she shot another one at his heart._

_The cannon sounded. The man was dead._

_Everyone was silent. "It seems that you told everyone about my parents, Alexandrite." Jem said quietly._

_"Jem, I-"_

_"Don't bother. It's fine. Either everything or nothing is a secret in these games. It seems that this time, it's nothing." _

_ "Jem, really, it just sort of-" She sounded genuinely sorry._

_"Alexandrite. You seem to be wanting to apologise. What for?"_

Tessa frowned. He was talking like he usually did now. Like everything was fine, trying to make other people happy.

_"I told everyone." She sounded very upset now. "The one thing you trusted me with-"_

_Jem smiled his usual smile. He then put his weapons back into his belt, and his hands on his head in a surrender. "I'm not going to kill you. You can stop pretending you care now."_

_Alexandrite looked annoyed. "How do you do that?" She asked fustratedly._

_Jem looked puzzled. "Do what?"_

_She frowned. "You can read someone like a book. You can tell when they're lying and when they're being truthful. You can see through an act, or immediately know what makes them tick."_

_Jem smiled, and then shrugged. "Everyone has a talent."_

_"Yet yours is throwing knives."_

_"I said a talent, not a preferred weapon, did you ever pay attention to English lessons, or did you just copy my brilliant work?"_

_"You truly are fine with it, your arrogance has returned."_

_"And you were truly lying, otherwise you'd still be acting sorry."_

_"Stop acting like that!"_

_"Like what?"_

_"Like, like-"_

_"Like you?"_

_"Yes! Urg, wait no, I mean, STOP BEING SO ANNOYING!" Alexandrite yelled. Jem laughed. His laughter, however, was short lived._

_"Kick behind you." Jem said simply, and she did._

_Upon hearing a yelp, she turned around, only to see a bunch of capitol mutts snarling behind her._

_Jem threw his blade at one, hitting it straight in the head, presumably by its brain. He threw another blade, and it took down another one of the beasts._

_He looked at the careers. One was on the floor, dead. Another had no left arm and only half of his right leg remained. A mutt killed the career swiftly._

_Jem grimaced, before he turned and left, not looking back._

_The scene showed Alexandrite and the two remaining careers take down the remaining mutts._

_"Better get those tributes from twelve." Alexandrite muttered._

_There were a few murmurs of agreement, before the screen went black._

"Why did he leave?" Tessa asked.

Jace looked at her like it was the most obvious thing in the world. To him it probably was. "He had no weapons, Tessa. If he'd stayed, he would have been killed."

"True." Tessa said thoughtfully.

_The next scene showed Jem being chased by some hideous, flying beast._

_He suddenly stopped running, staring at something in front of him. He smirked. He turned around to face the beast, and, right at the last second, he ducked._

_The beast flew straight into a solid wall in front of it. It stayed, in the air, for about two seconds, a small buzzing noise coming from it. Then it hit the ground with a dull thud._

_Jems smirk changed into a grin._

The scene faded again.

"How does he see the force fields? Is it possible to notice them?" Tessa asked Jace.

Jace shrugged. "You think I know? Will might, but then-"

"Will doesn't." Came an arrogant, familiar voice from the shadows.

Jace and Tessa jumped. They looked around, furious, to see Will coming towards them.

A beeping noise came from the TV. An age warning.

Will glared at the TV. "Don't." He said, his words covered in ice. "Turn it off, and now."

Jace smirked, and paused it. "Oh really? And whys that?"

Will looked mutinous. "Because. This scene, and all the following ones, are the reason no one will talk about Jems games."

Tessa looked thoughtful. "Jem told me that you and him were careers in your games. He also said that he was just one of the many victors, forgotten about. It doesn't look like it."

Wills expression turned sad. For once, his expression wasn't a mix of arrogance, vanity and hatred.

"Please don't watch it. Please. I'll tell you anything. Absolutely anything."

"What about everything?" Jace asked with a smirk.

Will nodded, arrogance and vanity resuming in his gaze. "Excellent. What do you want to know from the brilliant mind of William Herondale?"

"Why you don't want us to watch these games." Jaces smirk broadened.

Anger flashed in Wills eyes.

"Because the lighting isn't that good in the arena, it didn't exactly do anything to help my looks." A different, slightly arrogant voice said from the shadows.

Tessa, Will and Jace started. "Jem?" Will asked, as Jem walked into the light.

"I was hear before you were, Will. For the record, _that_ is how you eavesdrop." Jem said, directing the last part to Jace and Tessa.

Tessa couldn't help but stare at him. She had grown accustomed to the Jem she had been watching on the television. She wasn't used to this Jem. Pale, silver hair, silver eyes, and leaning on a walking-cane.

Wait, what? Cane?

Jem was indeed carrying a walking stick. It was a deep Jade, with a golden top on it. Looking closer, she saw the top was shaped into a dragon head.

Will also spotted it. And when he did, he didn't look happy.

"Jem, you shouldn't be up-"

"Will, no." Jem said firmly.

"But if you need the cane-"

"No."

"But you're-"

"No."

"I really think-"

"No."

"Jem."

"Will."

"Jem Carstairs."

"William Owen Herondale."

"Jemmie."

"Jemmie?"

"Why ever not?"

"You're being ridiculous."

"As are you."

"Am I the one calling you Jemmie?"

"I should hope not, last time I looked in the mirror I was William Herondale."

"Knowing you, you were looking in the mirror not short of one minute ago."

"Actually no, I've been here for a while."

"Yes, looking into their mirror since Maia broke yours."

"Jem-"

"Will."

"I can do this all day."

"Good, as can I."

"Jem-" Will was cut off from his statement by Jem clicking the top of his cane. A sword shot out, blue and deadly looking. Will sighed.

Jem grinned. "Trust me, I'm fine."

"You wouldn't be using that if you were fine."

"It's pointless trying to sleep, and my violin is in district one."

Will rolled his eyes, and Jems grin broadened. "To be honest, I'm not sure if I like this side of you." Will said.

"Now you know how I feel with you."

"Jem, _please_."

Jem looked serious again, like he usually did. "Finnick wanted to talk to all of us, that's why I came here. It's also why I'm up." He added.

"Is it?" Will asked. He didn't believe him.

Jem snorted. Sarcastic Jem was back. "Of course not. I got up because I wanted to." He looked to Jace, and then Tessa. "Are you coming?"

They all walked, rather swiftly, from the door, Jems blade now a cane again.

**_Jem got sass_****! It might make another appearance...depends on how many reviews I get... **

**Ok, I'm joking, but please review, I mean, an 8500 words+ chapter? Please? PLEASE! Also, fave/follow, and please read my other fics!**

**I'm a VERY regular updater, if I might say so myself! So check it out, please?**


	11. Broken roses

** Disclaimer: I'll do it in Welsh, in honour of our darlink (and my favourite) Herondale. Rwyf yn berchen ar ddim heblaw am y plot. Bear it in mind I got that from my sister, chances are its highly offensive and about me. Still, its supposed to say I own nothing except the plot. Cause I don't.**

Chapter- A word?

They walked down the corridor silently.

It was an uncomfortable silence.

"Wait. Do you smell that?" Will muttered, stopping dead.

Jems eyes filled with panic, which subsided quickly. "This soon?"

Will shrugged. "Apparently."

Jem and Will turned around to Jace and Tessa. "Don't say a word unless he speaks to you first." Will said sternly.

They all turned and kept walking, stopping up short at a door, which Jem and Will opened.

That was when Tessa and Jace smelt it.

Roses. An overpowering stench of roses.

"Yes, but surely it would be taken?" Will asked.

"Will, it's a weapon. No matter how hard Isabelle could deny it, everyone knows her bracelet is-" Jem broke off, looking into the room. "Finnick?" He said, with only the slightest of shock, looking at the president sitting in one of the chairs in the room.

Tessa exhaled softly. They were good. The improvisation, the acting, their facial expressions. So very good.

"Gosh, that can't be right. We saw him just under half an hour ago." Will said, sarcasm creeping into his voice. "You know, there is such a _marvellous_ thing in the world, Finnick. It's called a razor. You should invest in one."

Snows eyes became slits.

Tessa would have laughed if it wasn't a serious situation. _Will had some nerve to insult President Snow,_ she thought.

"Anyone would think you'd show some respect to the President." Snow told them, his eyes not looking to Will, but to Jem.

"Anyone would think the President first would need to earn it." Jem said, his voice polite, but with the slightest bit of mockery.

Tessa fought the urge to smile. _They were brave, saying that._

"_Or_ they may even think that since he has the power to do almost _anything_, he should be listened to." Snow replied.

"There is a difference between fear and respect." Jem replied, his silver eyes now cold.

"And what is that?" Snow inquired.

Will had the same look in his eyes Jem did. Cold, unforgiving, yet revealing nothing. "Worship those who are higher in 'social rank'. The higher the rank goes, and the crueller the person gets, the respect lessens and fear increases from the eyes of the people at the bottom who look on."

Snows eyes had never left Jem. "And tell me, William, what happens when a person from the bottom doesn't act kindly to those higher?"

Wills face didn't even flicker as he spoke. "Oh, that can depend you see, _Finnick_. A peacekeeper? 20 or so lashes from a whip. A victor? Nothing really. A game maker, before you enter the games? They'll remember to take your chances from you in the arena. But President Snows idea? He'll kill all those you love, and leave nothing." His voice was even.

Tessa shared a glance with Jace. _Maybe they shouldn't be here_…

"If you and your companions wouldn't mind, William, I would like to have a word with Jian."

Wills cold stature evaporated. He looked like he wanted to kill President Snow. He probably did.

Tessa frowned. _That was twice Jem had been called Jian, and the reaction to it this time wasn't good. Perhaps it was an insult she didn't understand_? She thought.

"And who is that?" Jem asked, his face unchanged.

Snows snake-like eyes finally left Jems face, and looked to Will. "Leave." He said, his voice commanding.

Will laughed coldly. He didn't move.

"Will." The voice who had spoken was Jem, his eyes looking at Will, silently pleading.

"I shall just be right outside of the door, it won't make any difference." Will said.

"No you won't. You'll be going to find Finnick along with Tessa and Jace, and find out what he wanted. We've kept him waiting long enough." Jem told him.

Will looked to Jem. They seemed to be having a conversation using their eyes.

Will turned and strode from the cabin. Tessa and Jace followed him uncertainly, leaving the stench of roses far behind.

* * *

Finnick looked up curiously as Will came into the room, closely followed by Tessa and Jace.

_Will? Going somewhere without Jem? This wasn't going to be good. _Finnick thought.

"You found me then? I'm sorry for the change of location, but-" Finnick started.

Will glared at him. "Did you know that Snow was on this train?"

Finnick looked alert. "What? No? Is that…oh. There was a sign on the door of the room I was _going_ to meet you in. But it said not to enter…" He trailed off, glancing to Jace and Tessa, who were standing by the door. "Did Will insult the president?" He asked.

Will snorted. "He called Jem…well, that wasn't important. But I should have killed him, right there and then. Low security, train stops, we escape. Perfect." Will said.

"_Jian_?" Finnick asked. "Is that what he called Jem?"

Tessa frowned. _Maybe it was a foreign language?_

Will threw himself into a chair, ignoring Finnicks question. "Snows talking with Jem now. Well, I say talking, more like threatening-"

Finnick frowned. "He'll be fine. He's not exactly an idiot, is he? He can find a loophole in whatever Snow will throw at him."

Will shook his head. "I wish it was me in there. Jem doesn't like to lie-"

"And in this instance it's a good thing. He's not going to lie to everything or answer with an insult like you would." Finnick said.

Jace walked across the room, and sat on the sofa opposite Will.

Tessa, deciding that she didn't like standing alone, also sat on the sofa, opposite Jace.

"What does Snow have against you?" Jace asked suddenly.

Will looked up, expression unreadable. "You watched Jems games, and watched him talking to his district partner about 'talents'. Take Jems, and then take mine, and combine it with our good traits. Strategic, smart, fighters and popular, along with the talent of judging and a 'way with words'. What do you have? According to Snow, a problem. Put me and Jem together, bind us in the way we are bound, and apparently, you get a weapon, and a powerful one at that." Will shook his head. "Of course, our complete disinterest in allying ourselves with the Capitol has made Snow fear we'll start a rebellion. The card for this quell was no accident, neither was the fact me and Jem were chosen."

Jace and Tessa sat there, in silence, thinking over what Will had said.

Finnick and Will started talking about things in low voices, when a voice behind them made them all jump.

"Will." Jem said, his eyes wide. "They aren't severing the bond before the games."

Will jumped up, his chair falling to the floor. "What? What did Snow say? Exactly."

Jem shook his head. "His words were clear, it was obvious he'd thought them through, I couldn't find a loophole. He told me that the rune is an interesting one, and he's never seen it broken before. He said it'll only separate with a death of one of us."

Will closed his eyes. In that moment, he looked vulnerable, defeated, and _weak_. He snapped them open. "We'll just have to look on the bright side. More time together, right?"

Jems eyes met his. "Yes. I suppose that's one way to look at it." He said quietly, before he turned and left.

Will followed him, but before he left he turned to Finnick. "After today…why even bother in the Capitol."

"What did that mean?" Jace mused.

Finnick looked at his hands. "Will and Jem, there will be something off about them. What Snow said to Jem, it's crushed them. They're broken. They're gone." He too, got up and left.

Jace frowned into the fire, Tessa looked at him.

"Why, why in the name of the angel, do I want to find out what's going on between them? What did Will mean, 'in the way we are bound?' What did Jem mean, what _rune_?" He asked.

Tessa remembered seeing a mark on Will and Jems wrists. The way they had clutched their wrists, the way that they cared about each other…

"That mark…" Tessa started.

Jace looked up. "On their wrists?"

Tessa nodded.

Jace stood up. "Say no more, Tessa, say no more."

* * *

Jace knocked on the door, and a rather annoyed looking Maia answered.

"I need to talk to Will." Jace explained.

Maia snorted. "Good luck with that." She stood to let him pass.

Jace barged into Wills room.

Will looked up. He was sat on his bed, and his head was in his hands.

Jace also noticed the room looked destroyed. Not messy… destroyed.

_It's crushed them. They're broken. They're gone. _Finnicks voice repeated his words in Jaces head.

"What do you want?" Will asked softly, sounding like he didn't care.

"You said you'd tell me anything. I want to know what that mark is on your wrist. And I want to know why Jem has it as well."

Will looked down at the floor. "Please. Don't talk to me about Jem." He sounded pained.

"And whys that?" Jace demanded.

"Jem is my greatest sin. And look what I've done to him, because I insisted he be my brother-" Will started, venomously. He broke off and shook his head. "That mark on my wrist is just a tattoo."

Jace narrowed his eyes. "You're lying."

"You're right. I am." Will closed his eyes, and he looked peaceful, if only for a moment. "Have you left yet?"

Jace rolled his eyes. "I'm not an idiot. That's a rune, on your wrist, isn't it? Whatever the hell a rune _is_, I know that it does something."

Will opened his eyes. "I had nothing. Nothing. Jem was there, a light in the darkness, an antidote to my poison. And that's what I am. Poison to all those I know, to all those I could never love. He knew the danger, but he didn't care. Now he's on Snows list as well."

Jace frowned. "That doesn't explain…"

"And why would it? You never gave me a chance. Jem is my brother, maybe even more. He's part of my soul. To exist without one another now we've been bound… it'll be like losing half of yourself. But while he's alive, next to me, my senses are better, especially hearing, and I'm stronger. Mentally and physically." Will drew back his sleeve, and showed the mark to Jace. Jace looked at it. It was a funny shape. Like a J and an L put together.

"The capitol had invented this. A binding rune, a _parabatai_ rune, they called it. Why wouldn't we go for it? Well, Jem didn't, but we were in the middle of training, like we sometimes used to do. I bet him that if I could get the longsword away from him, we'd have to do it. So he agreed, and I did." Will smiled at the memory.

Jace however, thought back to Jems games, when he fought the district 7 male with a longsword. He thought about Jems skill with the blade, and then to what Finnick had once told him about Will.

_Best fighter anyone's ever seen, and he's smart._

"How long did it take you to get it away from him?"

Will gave a smile. "23 seconds."

Jace tried to hide his shock, but by the look on Wills face, he'd seen it.

"Finnick not tell you I'm actually quite good when it comes to fighting?" Will inquired.

Jace smirked. "I, on the other hand, am excellent."

Will smiled again. "Guess we'll find out in a few days, won't we?"

Jaces smirk broadened. "Oh, I guess we will."

**Next chapter: Lightwood FTW! Should I start to follow the plot of catching fire? Should I make it long, or start to shorten it? Basically, should I do twenty chapters, but straight to the point, or about fourty, most of them fillers?**


	12. What keeps you alive

**Omgomgomgomgomgomgomgomg. I can't even. Omg! Every single one of you, search akinator on the internet. Like, WOW! It's basically twenty questions, and it guessed Jem in seven questions, Will in eight, Jamie Campbell bower in nineteen, and Finnick in 23. OMG, I cried for Jems questions. (**Is your character real, are they from a book, are they a male, do they fight the supernatural, do they fight with another boy, does the character have _silver_ _hair_, are they _dying_?)** I cried for Wills too (**Is your character real, are they from a book, are they a male, do they fight the supernatural, do they fight with another boy, do they have silver hair, are they _cursed_, are they _in_ _love_ _with_ _the_ _girl_ _they_ _saved_**.) But omg omg omg. Like, guys. STILL CRYING.**

**Disclaimer: I AM TOO EMOTIONAL TO DO A DISCLAIMER RIGHT NOW! You can't just expect me to say calmly that I own nothing unless the plot unless otherwise stated…**

**Oh, I just did. Sorry. Also, I'm winging this chapter, no links, no planning, but I will add the Lightwoods. Won't be of as high a quality as usual, sorry!**

* * *

When Jace eventually found the dining room again in the evening, it had taken him about one hour. He pushed open the door, making a mental note to memorise the way back.

He looked up towards the table, and sure enough, Jem was sitting there. He was looking out of the window.

Jace silently got himself some water, before he made his way to the table.

"You need not try to be so quiet." Jem said, turning to face him. His eyes were a deep, dark silver, which struck Jace as odd, since before they had been much, much lighter. Jace tried to wrap his head around what he'd said. His way of speaking, like Wills, was formal and respectful, Jace hadn't heard people talk like that, not even their escort from the capitol.

"What were you thinking about?" Jace asked.

Jem hesitated, before he told him. "I was wondering why we haven't run into the Lightwoods yet. I met you and Tessa the day you arrived."

"You were in our compartment." Jace pointed out.

"True." Jem agreed, his mind elsewhere. He looked up suddenly.

"Jem? Look, I think I found-" Will said, walking in, a small, silver box in his hand. Upon seeing Jace, he broke off, looking to Jace with a frown. "What are you doing here?" He demanded.

Jace raised his eyebrow, and gestured to the buffet table. "Dinner. Food. You know, the stuff that keeps you alive?"

The box slipped from Wills grasp, and at Jaces words, his face had darkened. Quick reflexes meant that he caught the box, but some of its contents, a small amount of silver powder, fell onto his hands.

Jem was sat bolt upright. "Wash your hands." He commanded. "I've had it, I'm fine. So wash your hands, and now."

Will waved the box. "Should I throw away this box, or not? It's the one you used to have-"

"Keep it. It sounds stupid, but maybe…" Jem trailed off.

Will nodded, turning to leave, but stopped as a girl with black hair walked in, her dark eyes narrowed. "See, Jace? _She_ wasn't eavesdropping." Will said pointedly.

Jace rolled his eyes, and Jem stood, walking over to besides Will.

The girl's dark eyes fell onto Jem. "Jem Carstairs. I heard the rumours, but I for one didn't believe that you had been picked."

Jem shook his head and smiled. Will looked at his watch quickly.

"No, I'm afraid I was chosen, as was Will, believe it or not. Is Alexander not with you?"

"His name is _Alec_." She corrected him. "And no, he's busy feeling sorry for himself in his room. _I_ however, have been trying to find people, seeing who to ally myself with. I was thinking about Camille Belcourt, but then again, she's kind of a bitch."

Jem brushed his hair from his eyes. Will, who had been watching Jem intently, caught it and looked at his watch.

Jace frowned, what Will had said to him before echoing through his mind.

_Here's a useful fact. Jem can judge a character in under 20 seconds, did you know that? _

_As soon as Jem starts talking to a person, I start counting._

_I was waiting for Jem to give me a signal. He usually does, to tell me he knows their character._

Jace frowned. _Pretty bad signal, to be honest._ He thought. Still, Will had glanced at his watch pretty quickly, Jace wouldn't have seen it if he hadn't been looking at Will.

Isabelle was still staring at Jem, her eyes narrowed slightly. "You seem different." She said.

"You last saw me two years ago, of course I've changed." Jem said.

"No. Well yes, but something else." Her eyes flicked to Will. "You as well."

"Well, we aren't exactly happy about going back to the games." Will pointed out coolly.

Izzys eyes narrowed again. "No. It's as if your sparks gone. You both seem…dead."

"Well thank-you, Isabelle, it's nice to you are comparing me and Jem to the walking dead." Will said, no emotion in his voice.

Izzy rolled her eyes, but pounced on what he said. "There. Right then. You had no emotion in your voice, you really did sound lifeless." She looked at them both before she turned and left.

_It's crushed them. They're broken. They're gone_. This time it was Finnicks voice that echoed through Jaces mind.

Will looked to the box he was still holding in his hand with loathing. "I should put this back."

Jem nodded. "I'll come with you." They made to leave.

"Wait." Jaces voice made them both turn. "Is Isabelle to be trusted?"

Wills eyes narrowed slightly.

"It depends whose trust she's earning." Jem told him.

"Ok, what about yours?" Jace asked Jem. Jem raised an eyebrow, and Will smirked.

_You have to be somewhat important in Jems life for him to trust you, he trusts no one except from Will. _Finnicks voice came again_._

"Fine. What about Will?" Jace asked.

Will shrugged. "I'll just go with Jems opinion."

"Which is?" Jace pressed.

"More often than not right, and you should listen to it even if you don't agree with it." Will finished, before he and Jem left the room.

_Damn it._ Jace thought. _He is one quick-thinker, and good with twisting words._

* * *

**I'm aware it's pretty centred around Jem and Will, it will thin out once we get more tributes on the train, I promise.**

**Again, follow/favourite/review/checkout my other fics!**

**And check out Akintator! (The shit reminded me Jem was dying and that Will was cursed.)**

**OTHER NEWS! Did you hear it? Cassie's going to kill off six characters in CoHF. SIX!**

**No. No. Nononononononono. Grr.**

**Deep down, I'm sure she'll kill Magnus and Simon. I KNOW she will. And I will murder her if that happens.**

**I hope I'm wrong. I so hope I'm wrong. I hope she kills Robert, Sebastian and Maureen.**

**Plus, Cassie tweeted ages ago that there will be no shirtless scenes of Zachariah in CoHF. Damn. Just when Izzy said (SPOILER!) he gets hot, as well!**

_I take humour and pride in the fact that my author's notes consist of my sewer-mouth, but my fics in general have mostly clean language in them._


	13. To fall apart

**Hey all! Yes, it's been 11 days. I'm sorry, got distracted with other stories that haven't been published yet.**

**Thank-you to a guest reviewer, who pointed out that Jace isn't really like the book-Jace, and is a bit out of character. I evaluated my work compared to CoB/CoLS Jace (**Chose those two because the contrast in character is noticeable**) and I spotted it. It slipped around chapter six, and was gone completely at eight. Like, I honestly couldn't see Jace in it anymore. A thousand thanks to you. Plus, you pointed out that you could tell I was a Jem fan. Yes, yes I am. And his games are significant for reasons mentioned later in other chapters. Put it this way, this is catching fire, right? But who's the mocking jay? Will? Jem? Both? :O This story describes Jem so much because he's an easy character to describe. A few chapters in, once were in the capitol, it's time for a plot twist. Well, not really, but sudden implied Wessa can change a story. A lot. I'll describe Will more a few chapters in, from Jems perspective.**

**Also, although it seems like it, this story isn't Jace centred. He plays a big part in the arena, but this is totally Jem-Will. A lot of Tessa, too.**

***SPOILER* She's the final thing they need to start the rebellion.**

**Hahahahahaaaaa.**

**Back to said topic, i'll try and pull Jace back up, but I deleted the doc manager savings of the earlier chapters, so I can't edit them. Sorry. Prepare for more Jacey-like scenes, and not some failure of a character that just isn't Jace. **

**It's just, he's a hard character to write. He can't be as bad as Will, yet he's got the lost-and-tortured aura to him. Its really hard to write.**

**Anyway, you don't want to hear by rambling. I wouldn't write if I didn't enjoy it!**

**Disclaimer: Someone please tell me if I have to put these for every chapter? Anyway, I own nothing besides the plot, but then again that sort of goes to Suzanne Collins.**

The rest of the journey was uneventful, the most interesting thing that happened was Wills reaction to when Gabriel Blackthorn stepped onto the train. Wills expression was one of delight and shock. The first emotion he'd shown since Snow had said…whatever it was he'd said to Jem.

_"Well well well…If it isn't Gabriel Mudstick." Will said, stepping from the shadows along with Jem._

_Tessa and Jace simply regarded him with interest._

_The boy, Gabriel, narrowed his eyes. "Blackthorn." He growled. "An honourable name, which I proudly bear. Herondale on the other hand-"_

_"And the pompous brat returns!" Will said happily, making Jem smile slightly._

_Gabriels eyes narrowed even more. "You know, Herondale, there was once a time when I thought we could be friends."_

_"There was many I time I have thought myself as a ferret, but it turns out to be the opium haze. Did you know it had that effect?" Will asked inquisitively._

_Jace smirked._

_"You know, I wouldn't be one to make jokes about Opium whilst Carstairs is present." Gabriel told Will._

What? Why_? Tessa thought._

_Wills face thundered._

_"Oh, you mean my 'disability'?" Jem asked him, after the long silence._

_"I'm sorry?" Gabriel asked, confused._

_"My 'disability'. That is what you called it a few years ago, is it not?" Jem asked, his face kind yet his eyes cold._

_"I didn't know that you were there that year. I had no idea you were-" Gabriel started._

_"Within earshot?" Will added unhelpfully._

_"And what about when you called me weak, to my face? It's not a nice thing to say to a person with a 'disability', now is it?" Jem added._

_Gabriel blushed slightly._

_"That's twenty seconds, Jem." Will said._

_Jem didn't break his gaze with Gabriel. "I didn't change my opinion."_

_Gabriel was the first to break eye-contact._

_Tessa noticed it, right then. Whilst Will would glare and threaten you to make you look away, Jem would merely hold his gaze. The look in his eyes would vary, from coldness, to mercilessness, to in one case that Tessa had seen with Will, a look that could shatter glass. Of course, there were expressions in-between. But the most common were those three._

_Gabriel huffed slightly. "About what? It is a sin to think highly of yourself-"_

_"To hell with myself, then." Will interrupted._

_"And the way you and Will treat this judging 'talent' you have-"_

_"You think I think highly of myself?" Jem asked, anger blazing in his eyes, but his words calm._

_"You know Jem, your right. He is a lousy, pathetic, worm of a-" Will began._

_"How dare you." Gabriel growled._

_"How dare I what, speak the truth?" Will questioned._

_"Take that back." Gabriel growled again._

_"Or what?" Will asked sweetly._

_Gabriel made the first move, but Will easily blocked it, and tripped Gabriel onto the floor._

_"Will, you cannot kill him until the arena." Jem said, as Will pressed Gabriel to the floor, foot on his windpipe._

_"Oh, but it's so tempt-" Will began._

_"No." Jem said shortly, and Will took his foot off Gabriel._

_"Very well." Will sighed sadly. He cursed suddenly. "Jem, the archives-"_

_Jem nodded. "Jace, Tessa? Do you want to come with us? It'll give you an opportunity to see district eleven-"_

_"And not all the people are prats, that's just Gabriel." Will added._

_Jace grinned. "I'll come."_

_Tessa smiled slightly. "I'll come as well."_

_Gabriel got up off the floor, muttering about Will being a prat, before he stalked off._

But that wasn't currently the case. They had arrived in district twelve, and a rather annoyed Will had been pounding on the district four media compartment for at least a minute.

He'd started off politely, for him. "Tessa? Jace? It's important, open the door. Now."

Now he was just being plain rude. "THERESA GRAY! JOHNATHON WAYLAND! IF YOU DO NOT OPEN THIS DOOR IN PRECISELY ONE MINUTE THEN YOU SHALL NEVER BE ABLE TO OPEN THE DOOR AGAIN!"

Jace started. "How the _hell_ does he know our full names?"

"IT'S A LONG STORY. ONE I WILL BE ABLE TO TELL YOU IF YOU OPEN THIS FUCKING- AHH!" Will yelled.

"How do you open an Ahh?" Jace asked Tessa, who smiled and opened the door.

"That was not funny." Will said sulkily to Jem, who was laughing.

"It is your own fault for not hearing me coming." He said, retracting his blade into the cane, although he didn't look like he needed it, as he was swinging it, not leaning on it.

"It's Tessas bloody fault for not opening the door-" Will began, before he turned to see Tessa. Standing by a door that was very much open.

Jem looked to Tessa, and smiled, yet Tessa fought back a shudder.

His smiles were usually warm and open, he usually put his whole being into his smiles. Now he was crushed. There was no being to be put into a smile.

"What William was oh-so-politely telling you is that the district twelve reaping is about to start. We wanted to know if you'd care to watch it." Jem asked Tessa.

Jace appeared suddenly at his words. "I would. As for Tessa…"

"Very much so." Tessa said, with a smile.

_"As usual…Ladies first." Effie Trinket said, from her place atop the stage._

_She cleared her throat. "Julia Persephone."_

_A young girl of about thirteen walked up to the stage. Her hair was a dark brown, and she had olive skin, and grey eyes. She was pretty, especially with her long eyelashes, already dark and stuck together from the tears she had shed._

_Effie waited for the young girl to take her place before she read out the card she had drawn from the boys. "And…Johnathon Morgenstern."_

_This got more reaction from the crowd._

_A boy with dark eyes, pale skin and white-blond hair emerged from the crowds._

"Oh." Jem said, pausing from his writing. "Will, you don't suppose…"

"No, I don't. His eyes are dark, not light, and his hair is more blond than silver."

Jem nodded, writing something else down, not noticing the pitying glance Will had given him.

_He looked to be about seventeen, and was slightly handsome, though the effect was spoilt slightly by the menacing, almost demonic glint in his obsidian eyes._

_Effie went on about how the games are going to be 'the best games ever!' for a few minutes._

Jem and Will were discussing something in low tones. "Pause it." Will commanded suddenly, and Jem pressed pause.

The scene showed Johnathon, his dark eyes hungrily scanning the crowd, as if waiting for something.

Jem nodded. "I don't need twenty seconds." He said, looking intently at Johnathon. "No one does. We don't trust him, at all costs, but we don't avoid him."

Jace frowned. "And whys that? By the look on his face, he's a psychopath."

Will raised an eyebrow. "We can't make it seem obvious we don't trust him. He'll figure something's wrong. Avoid him, but if it becomes necessary to speak with him, speak with him."

"What?" Tessa said, also frowning.

"Don't go knocking on the district twelve compartment. But if you run into him in the corridor, or if he comes to you, talk to him like nothing is wrong. Give mildly confusing answers, it tends to work with Camille." Jem answered, using simple words, making Tessa feel as if she were a student in a class, with Jem the teacher.

Jem pressed play, only to find there was nothing of worth in the footage, and shut it off.

"Jace, when was the last time you were called Johnathon?" Will asked suddenly.

Jace frowned again. "My father whilst I was around six. Since his death no one has called me by it. Except from you today."

Will didn't seem to take it for an answer. "Like I am called William when I annoy someone, do you call him Johnathon?" He asked Tessa.

Tessa shook her head. "Never."

Will nodded. "We're good." He said to Jem, who nodded.

"_Why?" _Jace pressed.

Jem waved away his concern. "This…Johnathon Morgenstern. Will was just thinking about whether or not the shared names will be a problem."

"What if Snow was to-" Will suddenly asked.

Jem shook his head. "If Jace has been known as such for most of his life, I doubt he will call him Johnathon."

"But he calls you-"

"Only sometimes, when he wishes to either infuriate me or make you want to kill him." Jem said quickly, cutting Will off.

"The day someone provokes more than mild exasperation from you will be an interesting day. As for Snow, I want to kill him anyway." Will said darkly.

Jem looked at him with wide eyes.

Will laughed coldly. "I don't care if they hear, and I hope they do. What can they do about it? We're already going into the arena."

"They'll take away your chances." Jem said.

Will snorted. "They already have by reaping you."

Tessa looked to Jace in confusion as Jem and Will continued their 'argument'. They always seemed to just forget they were with Tessa and Jace, and it was an odd thing. Not that Jace complained, he said any information about the opponent was useful, and these times were the times Jace and Tessa learned the most.

Jem stood up suddenly. "The tapes." He said to Will.

"Right. But we need the archives…" Will started.

Jem shook his head. "You can get them. I need to talk to someone."

Wills eyes narrowed. "Not a chance."

Jem rolled his eyes. "This time, you have no choice in what I do. I must speak with Gale and Haymitch." Upon seeing Wills expression, he added "_Alone_."

Will glared at him, before he stormed out the room.

Jem watched him go. "Jace, Tessa. Ask one of the Capitol attendants where the games tapes are kept. Take Wills and mine, and dispose of them. _Please_." He asked them, his silver eyes begging.

"Why?" Tessa asked him.

"So Johnathon can't watch them. You learn too much about us in the games."

"You let us watch them." Jace pointed out.

"Yes, but you wouldn't use the facts against us. Take my games, for example. Alexandrite uses it twice to unhinge me. If Johnathon found it out, he too could use it to an advantage."

"What is it?" Tessa asked, but regretted it from the distraught look that flickered in Jems eyes quickly.

"You watched my games. Remember it, if you want."

Jace looked like he remembered. "But whys it so bad?"

Jem looked to him, his dark silver eyes sad. "For each person, there is a sentence of words that has the power to destroy them." He said. "I am no exception." He turned, and walked from the door.

"Finnick! Finnick Odair!" Jace yelled, hammering on Finnicks door.

A disgruntled looking Finnick answered. "What?"

"We need-" Tessa began.

"What can you say that will destroy William Herondale?" Jace asked.

Finnicks face darkened. He moved to shut the door, but Jace blocked it with his foot.

Finnick sighed. "Can't tell you."

"Oh come on, we already know Jems-"

Finnick now looked like he wanted to, and was perfectly capable of, killing Jace.

Jace smirked. "Bad way to start the conversation?"

"Very bad. In fact, you'd better have an alibi." Finnick told him, his sea-green eyes cold.

"Err…I don't actually. But we have to know."

"We need the tapes. Jem asked us to dispose of them, and a Capitol attendant said you had them last." Tessa said quickly.

Finnick nodded. "I saw the reaping, and Morgenstern looks insane. I threw the tapes out, they're currently residing in the field just outside this window."

Tessa exhaled. "Guess that's a job I won't need to do then."

Finnick looked at her closely. "When was the last time you slept?" He asked curiously.

Tessa opened her mouth, but then shut it. _When _was_ the last time she slept_? _At least a week ago._

Finnick smiled. "Go. Sleep. Now." He told her.

Tessa frowned. "But…I can't. Its…it's the-" She broke off, not wanting to admit she had nightmares.

Finnick grimaced. "Bad dreams? Same problem, but with me they don't appear during the day."

"You have bad dreams too?" Jace asked.

"Everyone does, _especially_ victors. The thoughts just appear at night, when you aren't thinking about other things. But you aren't a victor, so just tell yourself the dreams aren't real."

"_Everyone_?" Tessa asked.

Finnick smiled again. "Next time you see Jem or Will, look closer. Will doesn't, under any circumstances, allow himself to sleep at night. And Jem just doesn't like to."

"Oh. Well thanks for everything, anyway." She turned to go.

"Tessa?" Finnick called.

She stopped and turned around.

"Don't speak to Will or Jem about anything I've said today, alright? It takes ten times as long to put yourself back together as it does to fall apart."

Tessa frowned slightly, before she nodded and walked from the door, Jace following closely.

**_It takes ten times as long to put yourself back together as it does to fall_****_apart_**** is a Finnick quote. Because I can, and it fitted into this situation nicely. So yeah. Finnick FTW!**

**I'm taking a break from this for a while. I feel as if it's dragging, and I don't like this chapter that much. I'll return in a while, give me about 2-4 weeks.**


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